The White Bridge
by C-Puff
Summary: Grief can cause many things. For some people, it causes them to do some deep soul searching, others contemplate the people around them who they love... However some people just do something really, REALLY stupid.
1. Prologue

Hello once again~ and welcome to what I HOPE will be another long-running story. I have a vague sense that I'm biting off more than I can chew with this one, but I hope you will be patient with me and try look past any mistakes I make.

This is once again a a story taking place in both the universes of the TMNT from their 2003 cartoon as well as the Usagi Yojimbo comics created, written and drawn by Stan Sakai. This time, the emphasis will be more on Usagi's side of things, however I am aware that few TMNT fans have read the Usagi comics, and so will try write it so you don't need to have read the comics to understand the story/characters/plot points etc.

Also, in my own chronology, this story takes place after the short story I wrote called "Haven", but it has little to do with the plot.

Basically what happens is this (skip if you actually wanna read the thing):

Usagi travels to the TMNT dimension, running from a battle. He sleeps off his fatigue, then returns to the madness that very same night and Leo is concerned about him and what will happen to him on a battlefield when it had already not been going well.

That's about it.

Anyway, that's about it from me. Any feedback you can give would be very VERY appreciated. Getting comments and responses is what urges me to actually finish these stories as otherwise I'd just put them down and forget about them.

Lastly, I don't own TMNT or UY or any characters from either universes, apart from bit characters.

**Xxxxx**

_Farewell is one of the hardest things to say._

_It does not matter where you are from, how you were raised or who your parents were. Saying farewell to some-one is always a hard thing to do._

_There are different degrees of farewell. None of them are by nature pleasant, but some of them tend to cut us deeper and therefore leave behind a larger wound than others. The kind of farewell you bid the people you know tends to vary depending on circumstances._

_And of course depending on what kind of relationship you have with the person._

_Saying farewell when you do not know when you will see them again is a painful business, especially when you are already aware of a sense of danger hovering around the person you are parting with. Not knowing where they are going, how they will fare and when you will be able to see them again weighs heavily on any mind who is forced to say 'Good-bye'._

_The knowledge that you will never see them again on the other hand can make the weight unbearable._

_Yet we are all forced to say these varying degrees of good-bye in our lifetimes. Such is the curse of being mortal. The only thing we can take comfort in, of what little comfort is offered, is that the ones we bid farewell to feel the same sadness in the parting. It is a symbol of affection and caring. Something we should consider ourselves privileged to receive._

_In the period of two weeks, I have had to bid farewell to two friends of mine, not knowing when I would see either of them again. I am use to saying good-bye to my friends, and so far fortune has favoured me so that I have been able to see them all again after doing so. This is a small comfort that makes it easier to step back onto the road and continue forward with my travels. Searching for whatever it is fate has decided I must search for._

_The first parting was with a good friend of mine who lives further away than any other person I know. He is young in years, but already he is wiser and more focused than I ever was at his age. It would be slanderous of me to perceive him as anything less but my equal, in both combat and strength of character. And yet his youth shone through when I had to leave him for obligations and duties I could not break. He was afraid for me, not knowing when he'd see me again and if I would be in good health when he does. A childish worry perhaps, but one I felt I should be grateful for._

_The second parting was with another good friend of mine, this one much closer to home. A friend who had requested my help in a campaign to root out and eradicate some brigands who sought to invade the lands of her lord surreptitiously. Our first endeavour against them was not successful and we had had to rethink our strategies and approach to the threat. With the element of surprise lost, we needed to move fast and wipe them out before the situation worsened. Luckily, we were able to out-wit them and, after a short time, drove them from the domain of my friend's Lord._

_With the threat gone, it had once again been time for me to leave and continue on my way. She had been sad to see me go, as I was sad to leave her and wander alone once more. But that is how it is. _

_Although every time we part ways it seems to get harder and harder to do so for me._

_Nevertheless, our farewells were said and I continued my journey, hoping fate would lead me to her again soon._

_This had been some time ago, when the day would still warm up as the sun rose and the fields were still green. They'd started to wither now, and the chill of the mornings lingered throughout the day until the sun set and the night grew cold._

_It will snow soon. The heat of summer and the comfortable coolness of autumn are also to be bid farewell. Winter is not far away._

**Xxxxx**

Actual story to follow. I swear XD;


	2. Anticipation

_Normally I wait till I'm 2 chapters ahead of uploading, but since only the prologue is up I felt submitting the first official chapter would be ok :)_

**Xxxxx**

Have you ever been waiting anxiously for an annual event? Let's say, for argument's sake, there was a convention that came around once a year which you like to attend. Or maybe something like an annual fare. Or how about a holiday like Halloween or Christmas.. ..or Ramadan if you'd prefer.

Now you know that unbearable build up where it starts getting to be a few days before whatever event you're looking forward to and you're chomping at the bit for it to just start already? The very air seems to be charged with electricity as you wait away the hours, preparing yourself not only mentally but also by doing busy work like packing a bag you intend to carry around with you or browsing through cookbooks to figure out what you were gonna make for the grandiose supper you wanted to cook or mapping out in your head where you plan to go first, what you intend to do, which friends you're excited to see most who only roll around during this time of year etc etc.

And then of course there's the night before where you're stuck in that chasm between being so pumped and excited you won't be able to sleep a wink, but you're also aware that you need to get some rest in order to be fully charged for the thing you're looking forward to so much.

I consider myself to be a turtle of rational thought and action, but I can't deny that eventually I'll start feeling like my skull's gonna explode from excitement prior to an event I'm really looking forward to.

Alright. Now that I've painted you this mental picture I want you to take that annual event, and then add about 2 extra years to how long you have to wait for it each time.

If this doesn't cause some serious brain haemorrhaging I don't know what will.

And now try and share a house with 3 other brothers who are just as excited as you are. Or more accurately who are even more excited than you are! I'm the brains of the outfit. I'm not belittling my fighting talent or my skills in the art of ninjitsu, I'm merely stating the fact that when it comes to leisure I'd rather discuss complex theories or pieces of literature on my favourite forums or perhaps dive into translating some historical texts whose 'official' translations I don't fully trust. To me, combat is a necessity, not something I do in my free time.

I guess the same extends to my brothers, but each of them have their own reasons for bouncing off the walls more than I was, eagerly anticipating the approaching Battle Nexus Tournament.

Mikey for instance was so hyper-active his brain must be operating on a higher plain of existence by now. He would be the official and recorded returning Battle Nexus Champion, a fact he'd once again started to remind us about ever chance he got. This kinda increased my impatience for the damn date of the tournament to just get here already. I thought we'd put all this behind us by now. Mikey had been very good about not boasting too loudly about his previous victory (or victories as he liked to claim) after the rematch with Klah taught him a little lesson in keeping his mouth shut and not triggering Murphy's Law. However, with the next official tournament on the horizon he couldn't help himself and was once again strutting around the lair with his chest inflated, casually throwing accusations that none of the rest of us would beat him this year.

This aided Raphael's eagerness for the tournament to start. Mostly to beat the arrogance out of Mikey, but also partly to prove him wrong. Raph had never really let go of the fact that the first tournament we participated in, Mikey did, fairly and honestly, beat him. I had a vague notion that Raph had been building up his annoyance and hurt pride over the last three years and was now collecting all that focus together so he could unleash it on Mikey once they got in the ring together. I only prayed they _did_ end up in the ring together. Heaven knows I didn't want Raph's frustration directed at me instead if I got that far in this year's competition.

I didn't do very well the last time. Oh I did alright, but I never forgot that I was the first out of the four of us who was defeated. I was hoping to fix this this year. I didn't want to necessarily defeat any of my brothers, I just wanted to be able to say I got defeated _after_ Mikey, Raph or Leo. I didn't want to set my goal too high and fool myself into thinking I could win, but I at least wanted to redeem myself.

Besides, this year there was one hitch for me, Mike and Raph as far as winning the championship goes. Namely: Leonardo.

Last time he'd had to forfeit due to the Daimyo's son and Draco's interference. That and having a poisoned dart stab him in the neck didn't exactly help either. In this sense I was glad I'd been out of the match already to be able to focus on something more important than a silly contest. However this time we had no reason to think anything would go wrong, and this meant that Leo would be stepping into the ring fresh, prepared, and fully capable of wiping the floor with the rest of us.

There's a lot of debate between us if Leo's the best fighter or not, but one thing we're all aware of is that Leo's the most focused, the most centred and the most tempered of us, and because of that he could often best us in a fight. Not that we couldn't give him a run for his money, and the rest of us were perfectly capable of beating him in a sparring match if we played our cards right, but the truth remained that Leo was a formidable opponent, especially one on one. He also had the advantage of knowing all our moves and fighting styles inside and out. I wasn't looking forward to squaring off against a frustrated Raph, but even less than that I wasn't looking forward to facing a determined Leonardo either.

Speaking of Leo, he was also fiercely anticipating the tournament. However his reasons were completely different from the rest of our's.

Mikey wanted to win if only to give himself an extension on his boasting rights. Raph wanted to win to shut Mikey up and prove he could beat him easily if he put his mind to it. I wanted to validate myself to myself and show that I'm not some-one to just sit on the side-lines and be forgotten about. We all had rather selfish reasons for why we wanted the date of the tournament to arrive.

Leo was anxious because he was worried about another contestant.

About 2 months ago, Miyamoto Usagi, a friend of ours from 2nd Earth, portal-jumped into our living room wearing full samurai armour. It turned out he'd been involved in a battle against a gang working under a rival Lord who were trying to invade the land of a friend he called Tomoe Ame. The battle had gone wrong when the gang turned out to have a supply of Matchlock guns, a rarity in Usagi's world, which they'd been hoarding for more men to use when they infiltrated the Geishu Province which belonged to Tomoe's Lord, Noriyuki. The battle had swung against him and, in a desperate act to survive a gun-barrel aimed at his skull, Usagi had come here seeking safety.

We'd put him up for the night with Leo staying up to keep an eye on him. However, before the rest of us woke up the next day Usagi had left again, going right back into the fray because he felt a sense of responsibility and was worried Tomoe might think he'd been killed.

When we woke up and heard Leo had let him go, Raph was furious. He'd claimed that if it'd been him he'd have tied Usagi to the kitchen table, at least until morning, to make sure the guy got proper sleep and a decent meal before jumping back into a warzone. Leo had argued that if he was in Usagi's position he'd be just as anxious to get back. He further countered by asking how Raph would've felt if he thought Mikey, me or Splinter had been killed but were in fact alive and well, asking if Raph wouldn't prefer knowing immediately that we were fine.

Raph couldn't think of a good argument to this and had merely growled darkly before pushing past Leo to beat the pulp out of his punching bag. They were on shaky terms for a couple of days but eventually Raph seemed to come around and act as if he'd forgotten the whole thing, Raph's way of letting Leo know he didn't necessarily agree with him, but could at least understand his opinion.

Days and weeks had gone by and there had been no second visit from the samurai. We weren't really sure how else he could get word to us on what was going on with him. A letter was pretty much impossible unless it went through the Battle Nexus and they weren't delivery boys. Besides, with the approaching tournament there was no point in so much effort if we'd see him there anyway. We just needed a little patience. We decided not to question it and wait till we saw him in person. Not really the ideal solution but one we could at least live with. If, in Leo's case, barely.

In time we'd all let it slip our minds a little. Oh we were still concerned, but we knew better than to worry ourselves sick. Usagi was a fierce warrior and his skill with his blades were at the very least on par with Leo's. He could take care of himself.

And so we'd all kinda stopped thinking about it and focused instead on our training and preparations for the upcoming challenges. All of us except Leo. He was training just as intently as the rest of us, but his attentions were not on the championship itself. He was anxious for the tournament to see with his own eyes that our friend was fine. It was pretty clear he wasn't gonna relax until he'd been reassured nothing had happened to Usagi.

And _then_ he'd kick our shells in the actual matches.

Yes yes, I guess I'm being kinda pessimistic. I'd like to say 'realistic' but I get it. Leo winning isn't a sure-set thing. But speaking purely from a statistical point of view it was much more likely that he'd go further in the tournament than the rest of us. Especially since Master Splinter had declined being a participant, opting instead to go as the Daimyo's guest.

I wasn't sure whether to feel guilty or relieved. After all, he was ducking out so we could progress further without having to worry about him taking us down.

"Mikey I swear! If ya don't find a plug for that noise hole of your's I'm gonna _find_ somethin' ta plug it with!" The loud, threatening cry came from somewhere in the main room.

"Careful bro! Don't wanna strain yourself before the tournament do you? After all people're expecting a show! It'd be kinda lame if I thrashed you in even _less_ time this year huh?!" The predictable retort followed.

I sighed, pushing back from my work-desk for a moment and turning my gaze to the ceiling. I'd been staring at the screen for too long again, but I was reluctant to leave my corner of the lair and be roped into the frenzied excitement with the others.

"You just keep talkin' Mike! You're only givin' me more reasons ta trounce ya, and trounce ya twice as hard!" Another threat called.

"What makes you think you'd even get close enough to do so huh?!" the cheerful voice called back.

"The fact that I've been cleanin' house with yer head every sparrin' match we've had lately!" Raph retorted. I could almost feel the sneer in his voice. "And lemme tell ya bro, I've been holdin' _back!_"

"Ooooh! Real scary!" Mikey said, sounding unfazed. "And what makes ya think I wasn't doing the same thing?!"

"You better not be." a third voice added. "Otherwise I'm dragging the both of you right back in there for another session."

"Yeah." Raph's voice snorted. "Because _you're_ the guy who calls the shots on when and how we train huh fearless leader?"

"Knock it off Raph." The third voice responded, sounding rather insulted but trying to hide it. "Seriously, we've been looking forward to this for years. Can't the two of you stay in your corners until the actual event is here?"

"Aw loosen up Leo." Mikey said. "We're just getting each other pumped up, right Raph?"

"Maybe _you_ were! I was dead serious!" Raph replied.

"Ok ok. I understand guys, I'm anxious for this thing too, but let's not go completely nuts ok? Look, it's obvious we've all got a lot of pent up tension waiting for this thing so how about we work some of it out?"

There was a duet of groans at this.

"Leo not another sparring match, I'm begging you!" Mikey whined pathetically.

"No. They're obviously not doing the trick." Leo reassured him. "How about we go on patrol instead? Not looking for any trouble:" There was a pause in which I could clearly see the mental image of Leo giving Raph a dirty look. "Just working off some steam."

"Alright!" Mikey said, instantly more enthusiastic about the idea. "Should we go get Donny?"

They didn't need to. I got up out of my chair, satisfied that I could use the break from my computer and walking in the direction of my brothers. I subconsciously flexed my shoulders as I went, loosening them up after the hours spent at my desk and warming them up for some physical activity.

I might not be one who'd pick fighting and training over something more intellectual, but even I couldn't argue against the idea of getting some fresh air and taking the edge off of this impatience we were all experiencing.

**Xxxxx**

_This chapter made me realise how rusty I am. But the next chapter was easier :)_


	3. Preparations

_I don't own TMNT or UY._

**Xxxxx**

Psyched is not exactly the word I'd use for how I was feeling waiting for this damn championship to just get here already. I kinda think 'psyched' is a feeling you'd want to have. I was more irritated than anything else. I mean I know I'm not the most patient guy ever. Let's face it, it doesn't take much to irritate me. But sitting around waiting for the days to tick by slowly with nothing happening, waiting for this thing's starting day to get here makes my skin itch, right underneath my shell where I can't scratch it.

My fingers felt twitchy, making me play with the hilt of my sai or causing me to twist my hands together, curling and uncurling them when I had nothing else to occupy my time. My turn to choose what to watch on TV usually ended with me channel hopping impatiently until my brothers started throwing various items within reach at me, yelling at me to make up my mind or forfeit my right over the remote. Of course giving up the remote was out of the question. Even if there was nothing I wanted to watch it was still my night and if i wanted to channel hop then that was what I was gonna do. Eventually one of my bros would get so annoyed they'd try and wrestle the thing away from me. Soon all 4 of us would be grappling for the remote until Master Splinter would walk in and neatly grab the TV for himself. None of us would dare try getting the remote away from him, so we'd just admit defeat and settle down again.

It was all a good way to keep me from going completely out of my mind. This tournament needed to happen, and soon. I had to enter that ring and prove, once and for all, that whatever the reason was Mikey beat me last time, it wasn't gonna be something that would happen twice!

Mikey kept going on and on about how 'he's the Battle Nexus Champion, He's the battle Nexus Champion'. Well guess what! Not only was I gonna thrash Mikey and prove that last time was just a fluke, but I was _also_ gonna be the one who shuts him up once and for all by being the guy who _dethrones_ the 'Battle Nexus Champion' and claims that title for himself! Oh yeah. Revenge is a dish best served cold.

No offence bro, but you gotta go. Really. If I hear 'Battle Nexus Champion' one more time I'm gonna force-feed you your own face.

With anxiety and irritability and Mikey's non-stop chattering I was about ready to pop when it came to a mere 2 days before we would leave for the Battle Nexus' dimension.

Last time we were contestants we kinda crashed the party uninvited. This time however, things were more organized. Donny'd suggested we each get ourselves a back-pack and get some things we could use while we're there and also leave space for whatever souvenirs we felt like dragging home. I wasn't sure how I felt about this. It was starting to sound like we were a bunch of tourists or something. Then again it was a good idea so I didn't grumble about it too much, despite not really knowing what I'd take or if there'd be anything I'd wanna get while I was there. I'm not really one for sentimental stuff like that. So far I'd managed to stuff a water-bottle, some extra shurikens and some cash I hoped they would accept to buy food since I didn't feel like packing any myself.

After 'packing' I dragged the back-pack to the main room and dumped it beside the couch so I could pick it up when we left. If I kept it in my room I'd only forget about it. Not that I'd care but I knew Donny would probably get on my case for it and I really didn't feel like listening to Don do an impersonation of Leo.

"You're just leaving it there?" A voice came from the couch itself.

I grimaced as I turned my gaze to see Leo sitting on our worn and frayed couch. He was busy polishing his katana, a task that sounds simple enough but takes a lot more damn time and effort than it had a right to.

I made a rough noise, turning to leave. "Just puttin' it where I can see it."

"Did you even pack anything?" Leo said, leaning sideways so he could peer over the arm-rest at the abandoned bag slumping over itself.

"Yeah yeah." I waved a hand dismissively at him as I went.

"You know we're gonna be there for at least 2 days right?" Leo said in the classic 'Splinter Junior' tone of voice.

"Yeah, well I don' need that much ta keep myself busy." I said, turning to glare at him over my shoulder as I stopped my march to the kitchen.

Leo was frowning at me slightly, a cotton ball covered in polish powder still gripped in his hand. "and you're ok with staying there almost empty-handed until we come home?"

I crosses my arms, turning to face him properly. "Yeah."

He stared at me for a few more moments before he eased up and turned to the front again. "Alright. Whatever you're happy with."

This irritated me even more than the nagging did. Leo nagging and acting like a mother hen was one thing, and trust me, that alone was plenty, but when he gets this uppity 'holier than thou' attitude it just sets me off. I made a noise in the back of my throat and walked back over to him.

"Why? What've you packed that's so damn essential?" I asked him accusingly. I really didn't think he could come up with anything that he couldn't do without.

He didn't look up when he answered, focusing on spreading the powder onto his blade evenly. "Something to drink, some shurikens, shell-cell although I'm not sure if it'll work, a first aid kit and a jacket just in case. I have no idea how the weather works in that dimension."

I could've kicked myself. Shell-cell! Dammit! Donny woulda killed me if I'd forgotten that! Not that Leo needed to know he had to remind me.

"Why a first aid kit?" I asked, leaning my arms on the back of the couch as I watched him work disinterestedly. "They got their wacky healer guys there and they can patch ya up a lot quicker than a band-aid could."

"It never hurts to be prepared." Leo answered, still not looking up from his polishing. He put down the cotton swab and held up the sword, checking its edge against the light.

I Pushed myself off the couch again, really planning to leave this time. "Suit yerself I guess. Sounds a bit like paranoia ta me."

"You're not the one who got darted last time." a rather testy reply came.

"Even if I was, I don'' think a bottle a' aspirins woulda helped." I shot back, walking out of the main room and towards the kitchen.

Mikey was at the kitchen table, his own back-pack lying on top of it as he attempted to shove a third large bag of cheese curls into it, crushing the first two into nothing but a cheezy powder. I pulled a face to myself as I passed him, heading for the cupboard for a more filling kind of food.

"Ya know they got food there right?" I said to him when another attempt at stuffing all 3 bags got him nowhere. "I'm sure ya can find something just as disgustin' and brightly coloured there."

I grabbed something that looked like pre-made soup and headed for the microwave, peeling open the carton as I went. Mikey lifted his gaze from his losing battle and blinked at me.

"Yeah, but they won't have these!" He said, bringing up a rather abused bag of chips. "These have been discontinued for like, years now! Ya can't find 'em anywhere!"

"Tragic." I said, putting the carton in the microwave and switching it on. I wasn't sure if I should put it in a bowl first but I didn't care. "Dare I ask why ya can't find 'em anymore?"

"I dunno." Mikey said, frowning at the bag and turning it over, inspecting it. "I think it had something to do with how much junk went into making this stuff. They last forever."

I pulled a face of open disgust at this, eyeing the bags suspiciously. My gaze drifted to the back-pack itself. "Did ya even pack anything else?"

Mikey gave me a frown and a small noise at this, apparently insulted. "Of course I did!"

He turned and picked up the back-pack, turning it upside down and dumping its contents all over the table. He then reached and spread them out so I could see them better.

"I got the chips, Issues 79, 80 and 81 of 'Geyserblast! The Steam-powered Wonder!', a pack of cards, my DS, and a yo-yo!"

I rested my hands on the table, looking over the small hoard Mikey was trying to smuggle with him.

"Why a Yo-yo?" I asked eventually, although I wasn't sure I wanted to know the answer.

Mikey shrugged. "In case I get bored."

"Right." I said. It wasn't worth trying to figure out more than that from Mikey. "Well if you're gonna take all this crap with ya ya better find a way ta fit it in your bag before Leo or Donny see it. I kinda get the feelin' they won't be too happy with your idea of 'essentials'."

Mikey gave a small wail as I turned to retrieve my soup from the microwave. "But I need _all_ this stuff Raph! I did a whole ranking thing with my stuff in my room and these were the most important things out of all of them!"

"Ya could dump one of the bags of junk food." I offered as a way of help although, for the life of me, I didn't know why I was even talking about something this stupid.

Mikey gave his head a hard shake. "No way man! That upsets like, the whole careful karmic balance of the whole thing ya know? If I dump one bag I'm gonna have to start the packing thing over again!"

This actually sounded like a great idea to me. It meant Mikey would be focusing on trying to stuff even more useless junk into his bag and I wouldn't have to hear any more speeches about him being the 'Battle Nexus Champion' until he got it sorted out.

"Hey it's your choice bro." I said, taking a swig from the soup carton. I was too lazy to get a bowl at first and now it seemed kinda pointless.

Mikey looked deeply trouble, his eyes darting back and forth between all the stuff lying sprawled across the kitchen table. Suddenly he perked and I could almost see the idea strike him out of thin air.

"Hey! I got an idea!" He said, turning to me with a broad grin. "You probably have some space in your bag right? What if I just-"

"No." I said bluntly, draining the last of my soup quickly and turning to leave before Mikey could form a proper argument.

"Aw c'mon!" He wailed, moving to follow me before he realised doing so would mean abandoning his precious pile of stuff. "Why not? I know you probably don't have that much stuff!"

"I have a strict rule about how much I want my stuff touchin' your's" I said, crunching the carton and throwing it away before leaving the kitchen.

"You probably haven't even packed yet!" Mikey called after me grumpily.

"Sure I did!" I called back before making a B-line for my room to find my Shell-cell.

-----

Two days until the start of the tournament turned into one and that strange sensation you get when you know you're going on a trip was hanging heavily in the air, although I wasn't sure if it was just me or if the others noticed things like that too. I wasn't gonna ask them though. They'd think I was some kinda sap or something.

Besides, we all had other things we were thinking about right now.

Somehow, Leo managed to get in my head with his whole 'Is that all you're taking' thing and I found myself going over the contents of my bag again. I still couldn't think of anything better to add to it though, so in the end I grabbed a random magazine lying on the coffee-table in the main room and added it to the rest of my so called 'essentials' before I dropped the bag next to the couch again and left it there.

Leo spent most of the time in the dojo, practising his katas and getting some use out of our wooden practice dummy. He wasn't using his swords though, probably since he'd already cleaned them and wanted them 'just so' for this thing. He probably thinks this is like some giant dog show where he's gotta represent our family or Master Splinter's honour or something equally goody goody like that. He's probably had his bag packed for days. Damn him.

Don had crawled out of his hiding place and was more actively involved with our trip now. I hadn't heard anything about him packing a bag but I knew he'd done so since the whole thing was his idea. Knowing him he'd probably had it packed before he even suggested it to the rest of us. Now he was using his time either sparring with Leo, or he was trying to work out some kind of schedule we should follow while we were there and when it wasn't our turn to fight. Things like how late we should stay out and how to keep in contact with each other and things like that. This made me wanna gag since, first of all, it killed any sense of freedom I got from being able to walk wherever the hell I wanted without some-one screaming at the giant walking turtle, but also because this seemed like increasingly paranoid behaviour. We weren't going to some distant country full of enemy soldiers or something! This was suppose to be fun!

I said something along those lines to him when he brought up the topic of how we should try communicating if our shell-cells didn't work or their batteries died. He gave me a rather dark glare and told me that he was just making suggestions and if I didn't want to follow them I was free to get into trouble on my own. Fine by me.

I didn't feel bad for ignoring Don's little agenda since Master Splinter hadn't said anything about us needing to be extra cautious. He merely sat and quietly listened to Donny's suggestions but never really enforced or dismissed them. Basically, as far as I could tell anyway, he was telling us to do what we thought was best.

Mikey must've packed and repacked his bag at least 20 times by now. He just never seemed able to get his pile of stuff smaller than the back-pack, and the one single time he did Leo'd noticed it was stuffed too full and asked what kinda things Mikey was taking. Of course, when he was told, he told Mikey to repack it and be more reasonable with his choices. Mikey disappeared into his room and stayed there where he was probably still wrestling half a dozen comics into the thing.

It was getting late and we'd all grouped around the TV for the night with nothing else to do. Leo and Donny were both sick of doing Katas and I was hoping I could get away with slacking before Master Splinter instructed me to get some practice in before we leave tomorrow morning. Mikey was still absent, not having come out his room since Leo'd told him to repack.

The TV was playing some or other dubbed Chinese movie from the 80s which involved a lot of special effects on a very small budget. It made the Power Ranger show look like high art. I didn't mind though, the extremely bad voice acting was a great way to forget about how anxious I was.

Tomorrow was the big day. As soon as we could properly call it 'morning' we were travelling to the abandoned alley and opening the portal to the Nexus Dimension. After that all kinds of things were waiting for us. Opening ceremonies, cheering crowds, reunions with old friends we hadn't seen in a while, scoping out the newcomers, checking out the various markets that this kind of thing seems to attract like flies and, finally, the tournament itself. I was pretty convinced I wasn't gonna be able to get any sleep tonight, but I sure as hell was gonna try! I'd be damned if I get beat just because I wasn't able to get a little shut-eye before the big show!

Some guy on TV was yelling disjointedly at a woman with a white face who could grow 50 feet at will and clobber him with her fan.

Man. Asian flicks are weird.

There was the sound of footsteps and Mikey leaned over the back of the couch between Don and Leo, his focus on my older brother.

"Hey Leo, wanna be a pal and help me out?" He said, grinning brightly and forcing his eyes to be even wider than they normally were.

"I'm not packing your bag for you." Leo said flatly.

"Nah nah! Nothing like that!" Mikey said, shaking his head so Donny had to duck his swinging bandanna tails. "I was wondering, do you have any room in your bag left?"

"I'm not helping you carry more useless junk either." Leo said in the same tone of voice.

"It's not useless!" Mikey said rather loudly. "It's super amazingly important!"

"Lemme guess." I said, tilting my head back from where I sat on the floor to smirk at him. "Ya didn't have room for the Silver Sentry figurine set."

Mikey stuck his tongue out at me. "Oh yeah sure! Crack jokes!" He immediately turned his attention back to Leo, not wanting to give him time to escape. "But this really _is_ really important!"

"Fine fine. I'll bite." Leo sighed, rubbing at his brow with forefinger and thumb. "What exactly is so important that I need to carry it around for you?"

"This!" Mikey said, his hand flashing forward and holding out our single, working camera that wasn't the throwaway kind and which Donny had been forbidden to dismantle. It'd been a gift from April a few years ago when she noticed how precious few photos we had of anything and how not a single one of them showed us under the age of 13. People don't normally throw out working cameras. For some reason she found the lack of photos some kind of upset in nature and had gotten us a sturdy, reliable water-proof one which she said she hoped we wouldn't break within the first week.

"Hey! Careful with that!" Donny piped up at the sight of the thing.

Leo reached out and quickly took it away from Mike. "The camera? Why?"

"Why d'you think? To take pictures!" Mikey said brightly.

There was a short pause in which Leo pulled a slight face at our youngest brother, clutching the device in his hands. "I dunno Mikey...."

"Michelangelo;" Master Splinter's voice drifted from the armchair where he'd been sitting patiently while the rest of us watched the exceptionally bad movie. This instantly turned our attentions away from Mike and to our Sensei.

He was staring at Mikey kindly, but with seriousness in his eyes. "Michelangelo, I am not certain taking pictures at the Battle Nexus would be very wise." He said simply.

Mikey honestly looked unhappy at this. "But Master Splinter...!"

"The Battle Nexus is a sacred place where beings from different multiverses can interact, spend time together and feel comfortable in the fact that no risk or dangers will follow them once they return to their own worlds."

"At least that's the idea." I grumbled. Splinter ignored me.

"I'm not gonna do anything dangerous!" Mikey insisted. "I just wanna take a picture or two!"

"Have you considered that perhaps some cultures may not look kindly at having their image captured in this fashion?" Splinter said patiently. "Or even if their culture and upbringing has nothing against it, have you considered that perhaps the individuals themselves might not want pictures of themselves to be taken to some unknown dimension where all manners of people could perhaps see it?"

I gotta admit, Master Splinter knows us well. He wasn't saying it, but it was obvious he had a very clear mental picture of Mikey running riot at the Battle Nexus and sending the camera flashing in every-one's face. Not to mention some of those guys have a shorter fuse than I do. If he ticked off the wrong guy we might have to kiss our camera good-bye.

Mikey sulked, staring at the camera in Leo's hands. "I wasn't gonna take pictures of people if they didn't want to." He said, rather unconvincingly.

"C'mon Mike." Leo said with a smile. "It's not that big a deal. I'm sure we can find other things we could bring back as keepsakes."

"Yeah but not the kind I wanted." Mikey grumbled, taking the camera back from Leo who handed it over without resistance.

"That's a little immature." Donny commented, giving Mike a pointed look. "Honestly, why are having photos such a big deal to you suddenly? You've never been the kind to get hung up on snapshots. Besides, what exactly is so important you gotta take a picture of it? You weren't this sentimental when we went there for your rematch."

"Ok, First of all, I was kinda afraid of getting killed so I wasn't thinking about anything else." Mikey said. "And second this isn't like that at all!"

"Michelangelo," Spilnter spoke again. His voice was still even and calm, but he was frowning lightly. It didn't seem to be in anger though, he looked more curious than anything else. "What is it exactly that you want to photograph so badly?"

I sat up a little straighter and folded my arms over my knees, watching Mikey with a smirk. I was pretty sure he was gonna say something like 'I wanna catch the expression on your faces when I win the Championship again!' or 'I wanna get a picture of my opponents so I can have a "last known photograph' when I pound them into the dust!' or something along those lines, to which Master Splinter would tell him not to be such an idiot and which might make him grumpy enough to not go around boasting for the rest of the night.

Mikey suddenly looked uneasy, turning the camera over in his hands and inspecting it as if it was the first time he'd laid eyes on it.

"Well... I was packing my bag again and I realised I had a bag of jelly filled gummy bears left so I went to the kitchen to go get it..."

Leo groaned quietly, putting his head into one of his hands, but kept his gaze on Mikey. Mike pretended not to have heard him. "Well, I was digging around the cupboard when I saw the fridge."

I frowned. "So? What about the fridge? Ya wanna take a picture of a Nexus fridge?"

"No!" He said, shooting me a look before turning to the others. "I was looking at the fridge, and you know how we have all the pictures stuck to it and stuff?"

Leo nodded but looked confused, Donny just sat, waiting for the point. Master Splinter said nothing and revealed nothing. I sat hoping there was a good reason for all this or I was gonna bap Mikey one.

Mikey played with the lens cap, clicking it on and off. "Well, we got a few of us, and one or two of us all as a group, and we got some of Casey and April at the farmhouse, and there's one of Donny and LH doing their geek thing and I think I have an autographed picture of SS somewhere, but that one's not on the fridge..."

"Get ta the point chowder-head." I grumbled impatiently.

"Well, I noticed we don't have pictures of some of our other friends." He said, turning to blink at Master Splinter again. "I mean Traximus probably won't be there this year cause he's kinda off bein' a senator and stuff and even so we could probably get him to like, beam one down or something, but we don't have any pictures of the Daimyo or his son..."

"I don't think he'd be very keen on posing for a picture Mikey." Donny said matter-of-factly. "Besides, He's gonna be kinda busy organizing this whole thing, I don't thing flashing a light in his face is gonna make him very happy. If you really want something like that you can ask if you can take it later when things are less hectic."

"Yeah well, what about people like Gen or Usagi?" Mikey said irritably, not happy that Donny had felt the need to give his opinion when Mikey was trying to win Master Splinter over. We all had an equal say in what we thought and felt regarding things in our family, but Mikey didn't like getting his attention pulled away when he's trying to convince a specific person.

"What about them?" Leo asked with a light frown.

"They come from like the stone age or something! They don't have cameras and stuff there and we don't have any pictures of them at all!" Mikey said, tearing his attention away from Don and focusing on Leo instead.

"They're from an Alternative 17th century Mikey... it's not exactly ancient civilization we're talking here." Donny spoke up again.

"Yeah, well they still don't have a camera!" Mikey retorted, brandishing the thing as if it were a weapon. "And I dunno how but we keep forgetting! I figured we might as well get a shot while I remember it instead of waiting for the _next_ time we see them cause, seriously, when the heck will that be right?" He turned his eyes back to Leo. "C'Mon guys. I'm not gonna go nuts with it. I just want something ta put on the fridge. Honest." He waved a free hand at Leo as if indicating something, holding the camera up slightly with his other as if he was planning to take a picture right there. "I could get one of you two together huh? That'd be kinda cool right?"

I saw Leo shift his weight and knew instantly that Mikey had won him over. I could almost hear the sentence 'Well, maybe the idea isn't that bad' drift out his head and echo in the room. Me personally, I don't put much weight in things like pictures of people and stuff like that. A Picture's just a picture after all. All it did was stare at you redundantly when the person its of is around anyway, and if they weren't all it did was remind you that they were gone and make you feel miserable.

"Did ya ever stop ta think they might not _want_ a demon box stealing their souls?" I said, cocking a brow at Mike.

"We could at least ask." Mikey said. "And if we ask and they say yes and we didn't bring the camera it'd be kinda lame right?"

There was a pause in which all our eyes automatically drifted to Master Splinter. He sat silently, his hands folded over his cane lying in his lap. He was staring holes into Mikey, thinking all this over. Mikey kept his gaze locked on him hopefully, waiting to hear what our Sensei thought. Eventually Splinter drew a breath and straightened in his seat a little.

"I suppose it is true that having a new face on the fridge would not be such a bad thing." He said calmly, giving Mikey a slight smile.

Mikey make a victorious noise that sounded more like a squeal than anything else.

"However;" Splinter interrupted him, raising a hand slightly. "I am putting the camera in your charge Leonardo"

"Awwwww, what?!" Mikey whined, his hands half way in the air, mid victory dance. "Why?"

"I'll take that." Leo said taking the camera from an unresisting Mikey.

"Because Michelangelo, although I agree with your sentiment and good intentions I am not stupid." Master Splinter's smile perked slightly. "And I know that once you get your photograph, simply having the camera in your possession is cause for concern."

"Point and match." I grinned, completely satisfied by these turn of events.

Mikey however was not and folded his arms, settling into a sulk.

"Now come." master Splinter said, rising from the armchair. "It is getting late and we have an early start tomorrow. It is time we retire. It would not do to appear weary and drained in front of your competitors."

I pushed myself off the floor, giving Mikey's shell a well-meaning slap as I passed him. Why I'm not sure.

**Xxxxx**

_Still feel rusty, but I'm working through it._


	4. Opening Ceremonies

_I don't own TMNT or UY._

**Xxxxx**

I was woken up when my alarm started beeping loudly next to my futon. I rolled over and slapped it to turn the thing off. I forced myself to sit upright, knowing that if I didn't, I'd just fall asleep again. I gave a sigh as I rubbed my eyes, trying to will my body out of its sleep. I didn't get a lot of rest last night. Even going to bed early didn't help as I'd lain awake for quite a while, thinking eagerly about what we were going to do today, wondering how my competition would look and how best to counter certain attacks which I was already familiar with from my first brief involvement in the tournament. Eventually I must've dozed off, although I wasn't sure when. All I know was it was now just turning 4 am and it was time to be up again.

I sighed, pushing myself up properly and standing. I gathered my gear and tied my bandanna tight, slung my katana onto my shell and hurried to claim the bathroom before one of my brothers could get to it first.

I stopped to bid Master Splinter good morning as I passed him and he gave me a nod before going to make sure the other three were also getting up, cane in hand, ready to give any-one who thought about sleeping in a good rap across the head.

We had a rather uneventful breakfast seeing as it was a quick one. Each of us shovelling down a bowl of cereal before we gathered our stuff and left the lair, making sure it was properly locked and invisible to any-one who might be crazy enough to consider walking around the sewer a fun hobby.

We travelled quickly, Mikey and Raph shoving each other as we jogged along the tunnels in the direction of the alley, each trying to push the other into the sewer water. Donny trotted after them, his trademark duffle-bag slung over a shoulder. He was gripping the strap slightly and the bag appeared heavier than usual, but then he didn't bring a back-pack so I guessed he'd decided to just use the one bag instead of weighing himself down with two.

It wasn't long before we reached the man-hole underneath our target. I went first, pushing the heavy lid aside and checking if the coast was clear.

It was still far too early for morning traffic but being 'The City That Never Sleeps' it was always important to make sure we weren't running into anything unexpected when we left the sewers we knew so well and went top-side, even if the area we were stepping into was known-territory. Just because it was _known_ territory didn't make it _our_ territory.

There was no-one in sight so I took the last few steps of the ladder and left the tunnel, taking a further look around as Raph, Mikey, Donny and finally Master Splinter left the safety of the man-hole and stepped out after me.

We trotted over to our usual 'Portal wall' for lack of a better name and Master Splinter set about drawing the necessary symbols on the wall with a piece of chalk. I waited patiently for him to finish, watching closely as he drew and wrote. I was still aiming to learn the sequence by heart myself so I wouldn't have to rely on him or a memo written on a piece of paper if I ever needed to make the journey by myself. Raph was lookout, making sure no-one from the street was thinking about interrupting us.

Once all the symbols were drawn I stepped forward and recited the now familiar incantation. I had been the one to recite the mantra the first time we followed Master Splinter through the portal, if only because it had sounded vaguely familiar to me, but ever since then it seems I'd become the official reciter as this was the second time I was given the task of saying the words apart from that first rather impromptu mission.

The symbols glowed brightly, first blue, then a harsher white. The everlasting puddle in front of the wall snaked its way upward, defying all concepts of gravity and the watery threads twisted themselves together in spiral before the glowing doorway opened itself up in front of us.

As soon as it reached the appropriate size Master Splinter stepped through it. My brothers followed him. I stayed behind, watching their backs until they'd all gone through before I followed after them.

I've done all kinds of weird travelling in my life. From being yanked millions of miles across the universe to being sucked both backwards and forwards in time to being thrown into parallel dimensions against my will to willingly stepping into a different world. Depending on the situation and how you were being transported it was always a different experience. Donny once said he wondered if one's mental state had any effect on a portal seeing as he was still convinced portal-jumping had something to do with the vibration of atoms and wasn't necessarily a physical journey. I had no idea. As far as I can tell any kind of journey's experience somewhat relies on your mental state, but I didn't want to discourage him from thinking about it. There was no reason to squelch his curiosity unless he planned to do something rash which, granted, Donny seemed to do every now and then.

Portal-jumping to somewhere like the Nexus dimension isn't really an unpleasant experience. If anything it felt a bit like walking on a treadmill. I had a hunch that the actual act of walking was pointless, but it made it more comfortable for me as it meant stepping out of the portal on the other-side felt more natural whereas standing still and then suddenly finding yourself on solid ground again would probably make me stumble.

The light changed from the spinning, disorientating swirl to the stabilized glow of an early morning sky and I felt my feet touch rough ground.

The world of the Nexus Dimension sprawled out in front of me. Its mountains and forests in themselves were spectacular sights, but the almost fantastic ruined heads of statues that must've been hundreds of feet high at one time lying crumbled around the open field and the strange, spiracle rock formations of the country made it seem as if we'd completely left reality and stepped into an 80s style fantasy painting on the side of some-one's van. All we needed was a giant muscle-head for a hero and some buxom girl as a princess. I guess Raph could fill the role of the muscle-head.

"'The heck are you grinin' at?" Raph's voice interrupted my thoughts as we marched eagerly to large circular arena which dominated the landscape.

I hadn't been aware that I was smiling at my own thoughts and tried my best to suppress it. "Nothing. I was just wondering how the competition's looking this year."

"Shouldn't we like, be on our guard or something?" Mikey piped up, looking around skittishly. Now that we were actually _at_ the Battle Nexus his confidence of being the 'Battle Nexus Champion' completely disappeared and he was starting to look nervous.

"What for?" Donny asked, looking around as well but more casually, adjusting his duffle-bag.

"Aren't we gonna get jumped for opening rounds or something?" He said, turning around and trotting backwards so he could look at the rest of us. "I mean it doesn't just start in the arena right? There's all that opening rounds stuff and... stuff."

I frowned and gave the landscape a suspicious glance, forgetting the beauty of the scenery for a moment.

Master Splinter made a sound of amusement, not slowing his step. "Until we announce out arrival we are not official entrants and will not be ambushed. Be at ease my sons, we are in no danger here."

I heard Raph make a small, irritable noise next to me but he said nothing, following after Master Splinter quickly. I didn't like that he had trouble trusting our Sensei's judgement but at the same time I could understand his cynicism. We've been here 3 times and all 3 times there most certainly _was_ danger. I was hoping this would be the event to break that running streak of bad luck. Or 'Turtle luck' as Raph calls it.

"I dunno Sensei." Mikey said, slowing so he could fall in step next to Raph. "I think if some-one wanted to jump us they wouldn't really care about what the rules say."

"They would if they wanted to stay in the competition." Donny said. "If they're here during this event I don't think they'd do anything to get themselves disqualified so early."

"Yeah." I said, agreeing with Don. "And besides, we're a formidable group. If any-one tried anything we'd be able to keep them at bay until some-one official showed up."

"Well that's true yeah." Mikey said, a wide grin spreading on his face and he widened his stride to a slight march. "After all, they would be facing against the _Battle Nexu-_"

"You breathe one more word and I'm tyin' ya to a rock and leavin' you here!" Raph snapped at him.

"Oh really? Is that right? And _then_ who'd get disqualified and sent home huh? Huh??" Mikey said, speeding up his march and trotting a broad semi-circle around Raph teasingly.

"Once they figure out how damn annoying ya are they'll give me the key to the city!" Raph retorted, swatting at him when he circled a little too close.

"I don't think the Battle Nexus is really a 'city' as such." Donny said thoughtfully, staring at the slowly growing arena in front of us, the Bagoda of the Ultimate Daimyo towering behind it with the even larger waterfall thundering beyond that, so far away it's gallons of water muted by sheer distance as well as the slowly growing roar of a crowd.

"Well they'd sure as hell give me somethin'!" Raph said, making another grab for Mikey and, being unsuccessful the second time, started following him threateningly, his arms at the ready to pounce him if he saw the chance.

Mikey noticed this and gave a tight yelp, twisting around out of his dancing and breaking into a faster jog in the direction of the large front gate. Raph speeded up after him.

I heard Don give a deep sigh behind me. "If any-one asks; we don't know them."

"Right." I agreed. "They're just some _other_ 5 foot tall talking turtles wearing coloured ninja masks."

I heard master Splinter chuckle under his breath at this as he watched Raph and Mikey zig-zag across the path in front of us.

-----

Getting to the central plaza requires going through the Hall of Former Champions. This was something I both really enjoyed and really wish we could skip at the same time. On the one hand it made me happy to see the immortal stone face of my Master's Master, staring defiantly down at us in a readied stance. Seeing the stone counterpart of our Sensei next to him also filled me with a sense of pride I didn't quite understand. I think Mikey said it best when we arrived here the first time and were told what this place was all about: 'It's like finding out your dad is Superman.'

After Master Splinter came the rather disturbingly large statue of Mikey and this is where it kinda spoiled the mood. Not so much because my little brother was standing larger-than life in front of me, that I was fine with. Heck I was proud of it. Proud of him for cementing himself into the history of this tournament. But the problem is whenever we visit this place we have to endure Mikey running up to it and instantly pointing it out to us, as if we'd miss it otherwise. As if the whole 'Battle Nexus Champion' wasn't wearing my nerves already.

I didn't let it get to me too badly though. It was all part of the build up to the competition. My brothers and I had, for obvious reasons, never participated in things like school sport events or athletic contests. We'd seen them on TV in some form or another. Either as topics in an episode of a cartoon or a made-for-TV movie or real life events like the Olympics or even just your average Baseball, basketball or football match. We knew all about the suspense, tension, and finally the thrilling climax, but we only knew them as 'outsiders'. Actually being able to be part of a contest like this made me feel, on some level, like a kid again. We would watch stories about do-or-die contests like this on TV and, in our younger days, would pretend we were in a competition ourselves with made-up prizes.

They were important games, although we didn't realise it at the time. They made training and sparring with each other fun. They made us want to test our skills against each other and see who could beat who and by how much. But at the end of the day it was always just the four of us, competing endlessly against each other with no thunderous crowd to applaud our victories and no girl to tell us we were the greatest fighter even. No 'Eye of the Tiger' or 'You're the Best' playing in the background. Just us.

Back then that was fine and all we really needed. But to stand here now, and hear the screams of real people, see never-before-seen opponents making their way to the central plaza and know that you're not just a spectator, but you were _part_ of this just lifted my spirits somehow. It was an unfamiliar sensation and even though it wasn't one to dominate my thinking or make me lose track of why we were there, I nevertheless welcomed it, along with Mikey's hyper-active excitement at seeing his own face beaming down at us.

It all blended together into a pool of excitement, anticipation, nervousness, caution, and a strange, underlying feeling of being accepted. There were mostly opponents here, but they weren't fighting us for who we were or where we came from. It was just a game.

Come to think of it though, that wasn't true. There were more than just opponents here.

I started looking around as we entered the main Plaza, trying to spot the white ears among the other faces.

----

"Don! Watch his buddy!" I called, twisting myself loose from the guy trying to lock my arms and subdue me before striking out first with the palm of my hand and then with a sweeping kick, knocking him flat.

Donny had been focusing on his own challenger and hadn't noticed his team-mate trying to flank him from the other side. However, once he heard my warning his position in the fray instantly changed and in one movement he'd placed himself in a better spot where he could face off against both of them without getting sideswiped.

To my right, I saw Mikey flip himself out of a roll. The sudden leap from being low to the ground to a sudden jump was unexpected and he managed to get a decent blow in with his nun-chucks while his opponent was adjusting himself to Mikey's changed position. Unpredictable and creative as always. Mikey knocked his opponent down before bouncing out of my peripheral vision, heading in the direction of Don who was currently stuck facing two foes at once.

Somewhere I could hear Raph's 'Kia's as he finished his own challenger.

The opening address by the Daimyo was done and we were currently facing against a rival team in our initiation round. They weren't complete newcomers to the arena, but they weren't seasoned warriors either. The Battle Nexus didn't do anything like skill-matching or anything since that would be completely counter-productive to what the whole tournament was about. It was just our good luck that we were facing some-one who hadn't won countless wars or who were decorated soldiers. They were putting up a good fight, but watching and sensing the movements and attacks of my brothers around me I knew that we had this thing in the bag.

I wasn't able to spot Usagi or his taller, cantankerous friend in the crowd during the opening ceremony. However, since this was just the welcoming speech the plaza was packed full and, being only 5'4", I had no hope of looking over some of the more gargantuan contestants. Especially when they pumped the air with a cheer at the Daimyo's blessing. Trying to spot a 5 foot rabbit or even a 6 foot Rhino was not going to happen right at that moment so I let it go and focused instead on the Daimyo's words, as well as the half-hidden figure of Master Splinter, sitting patiently and calmly next to him. I half imagined he was staring back but from such a distance there was no way of telling.

After the addressing speech we were immediately ushered to the surrounding fields to face a random opponent. Since this was just the preliminary round we were allowed to work as a team and, as such, face other competitors who also preferred working together. There wasn't even a discussion on whether or not we wanted to go solo. We just automatically moved as a group to our designated fighting ground where we met our challengers and, after the introductions and bows we faced off.

It didn't take long before the Gyoji appeared and declared the match over and officially proclaimed us the victors. Our opponents bowed and left, leaving us to return to the Battle Nexus and wait for the first rounds to begin.

Mikey was still hyped up on Adrenaline and was busy dancing around the rest of us, pausing every few moments to leave a few light taps on either my, Don or Raph's arm.

"No problem huh guys?! This is gonna be cake! Man I hope they start the next round like right now! I'm stoked! I mean I knew I'd improved but I didn't know I could clean house so quickly! Then again no surprise huh? I mean After all I am-!"

"_Don't_ even say it!" Raph said loudly, spinning to stick his face dangerously close to Mikey's, causing him to yelp and freeze in place.

"Good job guys." I said, trying to defuse the situation. "But don't let it get to your head Mike. That was just the warm-up round and those guys weren't Grade-A fighters yet." I turned, facing all three of them as we walked back. "Keep up your guard guys."

"Don't worry so much Leo." Raph said, but for once he didn't seem to feel like belittling my advice. He backed off Mikey as we continued on our way. "We got this bro. We ain't kids."

"We're not _all_ kids." Donny said, shooting Mikey a sideways smile.

"Hey! Who had to come and save your _butt_ back there huh?!" Mikey said, trotting to the much safer side of Donatello and once again going into his bounce of a step, planting a soft punch against his arm. "Er.. Me! That's who!"

"The only reason you felt like coming over to me was because you didn't wanna help Raph try and take down the big guy!" Don retorted, grabbing onto Mikey's shell and giving him a playful shove.

"Yeah. Thanks for nuthin' guys. Glad ta know ya got my back." Raph said with mock annoyance.

"Aw, you're gonna have to learn how ta fight by yourself some day Raph! Especially since you're gonna have to do so in there!" He threw a thumb in the direction of the arena. "Of course, not that it's gonna help you cause eventually you'll have to face _Me! The Battle Nexus Champion!_"

The second the words left his mouth he spun around and broke into a sprint, running away. Just as well too because not a fraction of a second later Raph nearly pushed me over streaking after him, ready to plant Mike's face against the nearest wall.

"Jeez." Don put a hand on my shoulder, an instinctive reaction to make sure I was steady on my feet. "You think it's a good idea they get in a ring together? Raph might _kill_ him."

"They've got that teleporting thing though." I laughed as we entered the large doors of the building before turning down a corridor heading in the direction of the Daimyo's viewing Balcony where Master Splinter was waiting.

"Yeah but I'm worried he might pummel Mikey to dust before they have a _chance_ to teleport him away." Donny grinned back. Somewhere ahead of us I heard cries of mercy from Mike as Raph had evidently captured him and was now doing some well honed and practised tortures on him to make him pay for once again bringing up the 'B' word.

"We better go help him." Donny sighed.

I nodded but stopped. "D'you mind if I leave it to you? There's something I wanna do while I have time before the next match."

Donny gave me a confused stare before realization hit him and he gave a nod. "Alright but you owe me. And don't whine if you get back and Raph's managed to stuff Mikey in a fountain somewhere."

"Thanks Don." I gave him a smile before turning and walking back the way we'd come, heading for one of the more public corridors. If Usagi had managed to get beaten in the preliminary round I would've been seriously surprised.

-----

I wandered down what felt like the hundredth hallway, although in reality it was probably only the 8th or so. I hadn't seen hide nor hair of Usagi. Granted, the crowd was still pretty big and there was a chance that perhaps he hadn't completed his round yet but somehow it just didn't feel right to me.

'Stop it! You're jumping to conclusions and letting worry get the best of you!' I reprimanded myself silently.

I walked the length of the hallway, passing contestants who were laughing, retelling their matches to each other or complaining about an unfair loss. However none of them looked even remotely familiar to me.

I quickened my step, scanning the faces I passed and trying to catch glimpses past them at any-one who might be hidden from view behind a larger contestant or who might not be taking part in the boasting or whining of the others. Complaining wasn't Usagi's style, nor was showing off or gloating. Usagi was pretty humble and I knew that, although he was a bit of a 'people person', he probably wouldn't want to listen to people blowing their own horns.

I kept my eyes open for Gen though, who was both bigger than Usagi and easier to spot and who was also exactly the type to either complain about an unfair match or boast about a victory, even if it was just to find a way to make some money out of it.

I wasn't able to find either of them.

I blew a frustrated breath and turned a corner into a different hallway. This one led me to a set of smaller doors which led to the smaller buildings and market stalls outside the main bagoda and arena. I could hear the noise of people trying to cut deals, haggle over the price of trinkets and easy to carry foods as well as seller calling out their wares to passers by in a hope that they'd spend whatever currency they brought with them at their specific stall and not the one a few feet down who was selling the exact same merchandise. The preliminary battles had barely finished and already the small town surrounding the arena was thick with people, both contestants and those who were there to watch. You couldn't even see the other end of the street from where I stood.

I hesitated, standing in the doorway as I looked over the scene. There was a very good chance that if I went searching for my friends in there that I would either get lost, or get so caught up in the crowd and the twisting pathways that I would be late for the first round and get disqualified. Besides, I didn't have any sense of direction on where to go or if either of them were in the town at all. And even if they were they might simply be getting some food at one of the Inns or a restaurant or something and I wouldn't see them in the street anyway, and there is no earthly way I could check every building and be back in time.

It left a terribly bitter taste in my mouth, but I had to admit defeat and accept that if they were in the town I wasn't gonna find them. Time was getting short either way, and if I didn't run into them heading back the way I came to meet up with the others I wasn't going to see them at all until at least intermission.

I turned, giving the wall beside me a half-hearted thump with the side of my fist as I wandered back in the direction of the Daimyo's quarters.

I wondered rather dejectedly if perhaps Usagi was trying to find me as well and we were somehow missing each other because neither of us were standing still. This wasn't very far-fetched.

When I last saw him, I was going insane with worry. I was seeing him off as he was about to step back through a portal to a rough and vicious world where people killed each other over the pettiest things and honour and loyalty dictated the very way of life. I could live with this as my own life wasn't much safer and my enemies weren't any less, but he had come to our home completely exhausted, disorientated and badly shaken. Not only that but the only reason he even made the jump in the first place was because the only other alternative was, literally, death. Right after he gave me a long and elaborate retelling of the madness and bloodshed he'd just come from he went right back. Strapping segmented brass armour to himself that screamed nothing but violence to me before he turned and told me not to worry too much. Then he left through a portal to an unknown place and I haven't seen or heard from him since. It made my stomach turn just thinking about it.

'Then don't think about it.' My inner voice said to me. He'd been perfectly aware that I was worried about him and that I was afraid of what might happen to him that side of the world or universe or whatever you want to call it. The chances are high that he'd been running around this place just as much as me, trying to find me so he could fill me in on what happened after he left and went back to his own world so we could have a laugh about it.

I heard some raised voices ahead, Not that that was anything spectacular really, but these sounded like the voices of people who had more than yelling on their minds. I frowned, my train of thought derailed as I sped up to see what was going on.

I rounded the corner of the hallway just in time to see the Gyoji floating in front of two rather sizeable people who were glaring daggers at each other but who both seemed to be in the middle of turning and walking away. Probably a good thing too. They both looked to be part of different warrior races, much taller than any normal human being would grow back on Earth and both looking like they weighed half a ton. Something which, by the looks of them, could've been very possible.

Whatever argument had broken out between them had been defused though and they both turned and walked away, followed by their own set of groupies as the Gyoji stayed behind, looking back and forth between them to make sure neither of them had any sudden violent urges to get in the last word.

"What was that about?" I asked, walking over to the Gyoji.

The translucent referee of the Battle Nexus turned at the sound of my voice but relaxed when he recognized me. "Nothing for you to be concerned with Leonardo. Merely two contestants who are dissatisfied with the outcome of their preliminary match."

I sighed but nodded. No matter which dimension you're in, you're always gonna have sore losers.

"If you will excuse me, I have other duties to attend." the Gyoji said, moving to disappear and travel to wherever else he was needed.

"Hey! Could you wait a moment please?" I said as a thought struck me.

The Gyoji stopped and turned back to me. If I didn't know better I'd say he looked somewhat annoyed. "Is this very important Leonardo? There are still many combatants in the contest and I need to make sure no illegal actions are carried out among them."

"Yeah I know. I'm sorry." I said hurriedly. "It's just I've been searching this whole place for a friend of mine and I can't find him anywhere. I know it's not your job to play tracker but it's kind of important that I find him."

The words spilled out in a hurry. I wasn't exactly sure what I wanted the Gyoji to do. He had more important things to do than to settle my growing paranoia, but I was getting desperate and my protective nature was starting to get the better of me.

"You don't have to go looking for him or anything." I added quickly, not wanting him to get insulted. "But I know you refereed the preliminary matches. I just wanna know if he won his match, or how he did or if..." If what? If he was still in one piece? "If he struggled." I ended rather pathetically.

"Well that depends on who you are talking about." The Gyoji said, sounding a little more patient at the news that I wasn't going to send him on a wild goose chase. "You have not told me the name of your friend."

"Huh? Oh yeah right!" I said, grateful for being listened to. "It's Usagi. Miyamoto Usagi."

"Ah yes. The Samurai from 2nd Earth." The Gyoji said. Knowing the important part Usagi'd played in more than one situation here at the Battle Nexus I wasn't surprised by the immediate recollection.

"Yeah." I nodded, relaxing a little.

The Gyoji thought for a few seconds before focusing back on me. "I am sorry Leonardo, but I do not recall Miyamoto entering in this year's events as either competitor or spectator. He seems to have chosen not to attend."

An ice cold stone dropped from my throat right down into my stomach.

"He's not here?" I asked, my voice feeling strangely tight.

The Gyoji gave a bow. "I do not believe so."

"What about Gen?!" I blurted out quickly. "Gennosuke!" I stammered, trying to remember the Rhino's family name but it escaped me. Gen was Usagi's best friend, or at least he claimed to be. He ought to know if anything happened to him.

"Murakami Gennosuke has also not entered this year's events." the Gyoji replied, sounding completely unfazed by my sudden change of mood. "Nor has any-one else from 2nd Earth if that helps."

I stared at him, wide-eyed. I dropped my gaze to the floor as terrible thoughts which I'd barricaded in the back of my mind for the past few months suddenly broke free and ran riot through my head.

"I am sorry I could not be of help Leonardo." the Gyoji said. He sounded sincere. "But I really must return to my official duties."

"Y.. ..yeah..." I heard my voice say. "Thank you."

The Gyoji folded in on himself, disappearing from the corridor.

I turned, walking back in the direction of the Daimyo's quarters, my brothers, and Master Splinter.

Usagi wasn't here.

I didn't really care if I'd had to go to the first match without seeing him if the Gyoji had told me he won his preliminary round. I could've waited until Intermission easily. I wouldn't even have minded if it took until the second day, or after the tournament, or even if I first caught a glimpse of him if we were somehow matched against each other again in the arena. If I had heard nothing else but 'He's decided to merely watch this year.' I would've been satisfied. I might've been disappointed and slightly annoyed but I could've lived with it.

But he wasn't here. And the question that kept spinning around my head was; 'Why not?'

**Xxxxx**

_._


	5. Absence

_I don't own TMNT or UY._

_It's 4 am. Why the heck am I still awake and writing?_

**Xxxxx**

"Usagi's not here."

I turned my head at the sound of Leo's voice coming into the room. I was just in the middle of telling Master Splinter about our most awesome of victories against the poor saps we just totally creamed when he walked in.

Master Splinter was standing quietly, his eyes fixed on me as I went about telling him about how we completely kicked their butts without even breaking a sweat, with re-enactment of course, although Raph wasn't really getting into the spirit and gave me death glares whenever I tried demonstrating a particularly awesome move I pulled off on him. I thought about using Donny to show Master Splinter instead but he was sitting to the side and watching, drinking from a water bottle he pulled out of his magic bag. The Ultimate Daimyo had said hi before he wandered off to do official type things before the next match was announced to start so it was just us on the balcony at the moment apart from this one guard looking guy who I could see was doing his very best not to crack up and looked to almost be in pain trying to fight down a laugh.

I was right in the middle of demonstrating just how hard the last guy I beat up fell on his face when Leo interrupted me. I was a little bugged by this. The first proper round was about to start and I was just at the best part of the story.

Raph turned to Leo when he walked in. "You askin' if he's here with us?" Raph frowned, confused by Leo's statement.

"No. I mean he's not _here._" Leo came over to the rest of us. He had a very deep, hard-set frown on his face. "He hasn't entered the competition. Not as a fighter and not as a spectator. He didn't show up."

"What?" I couldn't stop the word from slipping out. I straightened out of my pose of just how twisted up this guy got and turned to focus on Leo instead. "He's not here at all?"

"No." Leo said stiffly.

"C'mon Leo." Donny said, getting up and coming closer. "It's a big place. Maybe you just missed him or something."

Leo shook his head at this. "I asked the Gyoji. He says neither Usagi or Gen are here."

"So what does that mean?" I asked, looking back and forth between Leo and Master Splinter. I wasn't liking this at all. "Is he late or something?"

"If he's late he's outta the contest Lunk-head." Raph growled at me before turning his attention back to Leo. "Did ya ask if he's let 'em know why he ain't here? Did he leave a message or somethin'?"

"No." Leo shook his head again. "I didn't ask but it was pretty obvious the Gyoji hadn't heard from him at all or he would've told me. It's like he just vanished." Leo's frown deepened.

"That's kinda extreme isn't it?" Donny said, frowning lightly himself. "I mean, so he's not here. But that doesn't mean he's dropped off the face of the Earth. I'm sure there's a perfectly logical explanation for this."

"Yeah? Like what?" Raph said, turning to Donny with a dark expression. "Except for the obvious one."

"_Raph!"_ Don said in a horrified voice.

"Alright everybody just stop!" Leo said, raising his hands. "Just.. stop ok? Look all I know is he's not _here_. Why I don't know, but sitting here trying to come up with reasons isn't going to help."

Raph said nothing else, folding his arms. I could see his hand gripping onto his own arm tightly as he clenched his teeth.

"What exactly is it that the Gyoji said Leonardo?" Splinter asked, taking a few steps closer to him, giving the rest of us a quick glance.

"I asked him how Usagi did in the preliminary round and he told me Usagi hadn't entered this year's tournament. So I asked if he'd seen Gen since I figured Gen might know what's going on but Gen hasn't shown up either." Leo said. His voice was calm and business like, but I could see on his face he was pretty freaked out.

"Hmm." Splinter said thoughtfully. "And he gave no reasons why both of them decided to be absent?"

Leo shook his head. "I don't think he knew, but he was in a hurry to do his referee thing so I only got basic info."

Splinter nodded at this. "I find it strange that they have both decided not to be here this year."

"D'you think it might be for the same reason?" I asked. I didn't want to say what the actually reason might be. I figured Master Splinter could probably come up with a much more optimistic idea than I could right now.

"I would not know." Master Splinter said. "But I think it is something we should keep in mind. Perhaps conditions on 2nd Earth are just such that it would not be best that they leave for a battle of honour when there are more practical things that need attention in their own lives."

"Like what? Doing their laundry?" I asked. Raph shot me a look that I recognized as a warning.

"Sometimes, it is best to put aside things such as battles for glory in favour of things that are more important." Master Splinter said.

I didn't know what he was talking about to be honest. We were talking about why Usagi and Gen weren't here and trying to come up with a good reason for it, but when he said that sentence he was staring at Leo, very hard and meaningfully.

Leo said nothing, but the corners of his mouth pulled as he thought about this. He eventually gave a sigh and shook his head as if to shake something loose.

"It's just weird." He said. "He told me he'd let me know once things were ok. I told him he'd better promise me and he swore he'd let me know. So why isn't he here?"

"You ask questions none of us know the answer to." Splinter said gently. "Instead, you should focus on what we _do_ know, and not on what we don't."

"Ok." Donny said, since this sounded like his cue for some brainy comments. "So what we know is he's not here. But neither is Gen. And... that's it."

"Brilliant Don." Raph said Sarcastically.

Donny turned to glare at him angrily. "Well I agree with Master Splinter. The fact that Gen isn't here either is worth noting. I'm betting them not being here has something to do with their dimension synching up with this one or because they're busy doing something else or something basic like that. It's dumb to just automatically jump to the worst scenario when there's probably a very mundane reason for it."

I thought about this for a few seconds. "Like... In that one episode of 'That's My baby' where 'Mom' and 'Dad' got worried when they went on a ski trip and Peggy-Gee wouldn't answer the phone 'cause she was always out of the house when they called?"

The rest of my family stared at me dumbly. In the corner of the Balcony I half-saw the guard double over slightly, shaking rather hard.

"What the heck've you been watchin' Mike?" Raph said flatly.

I frowned, but I could feel my face burning under the sudden focused attention. "I only saw the show once ok! It was 4 in the morning and I couldn't sleep!"

"Well anyway," Donny said, trying to break the sudden awkwardness. "If we translated all that into normal English then yeah. Pretty much."

"Ha!" I shot Raph a smirk but was a little disappointed to see he wasn't paying attention to me any-more.

Leo gave a sigh but nodded. "I guess it's possible yeah. I just don't like not knowing."

"Hey, we know _that_ bro." Raph said, giving him a toothy smile. "Don' get too hung up though ok? Just remember ta pound the guy next time ya see him so he doesn't do it again." He pounded a fist into the palm of his other hand lightly.

I wanted to point out that Raph'd been the one to be all dark and cynical about it just a few seconds ago but seeing as Leo seemed to be relaxing a little I decided to shut up about it for now.

Leo gave a nod and managed a smile. "I'm counting on you to remind me." He said to Raph.

We were interrupted by a sudden, very loud sound like a fog-horn or something.

"It's the call for the First Round." Donny said.

"Duh." Raph said. I hadn't known it was but I didn't feel like saying so and sounding stupid.

There was a short pause in which none of us were sure what to do. I wanted to hurry to the Plaza so we could get the second speech by the Daimyo out of the way and get on with the actual one on one matches. I mean I was planning to win this! I didn't wanna get kicked out for being late! That'd be the worst thing ever! But I also didn't wanna just walk out of the room when every-one else seemed so unsure about what's going on.

"What do you want to do?" Splinter asked carefully, watching Leo's face.

Leo made a small noise, thinking quietly for a few moments. He then looked up and I saw him look back and forth between the rest of us. We were all staring at him quietly, waiting to see what he'd decide. I wanted to go! I wanted to win this! But I waited to see what Leo wanted to do. Because he's the leader.

Leo gave a small breath, relaxing slightly and turning towards the door. "Come on. We'll get disqualified if we're not there for the Daimyo's speech."

"Lead the way." Raph said, turning to follow him.

"Alright!" I said, trotting after my bros happily. "Here we go guys! Round one baby! Prepare to eat my dust cause I'm gonna be pounding _all_ of you!"

"I'll be damned if I get beaten by a guy who stays up ta watch soap operas from the 50s!" Raph snapped at me.

"I said that was just the one time!" I said, speeding up a little so I could be first.

"And yet you remember the characters' names clearly." Donny commented.

"They're easy names!" I said, feeling my face starting to burn again slightly.

"Sure." Raph said. "Ya don't hafta admit ya watch really girly shows if ya don't want to Mikey."

Leo said nothing.

----------

"This one's mine!" I said, running up to a door and placing a hand against it. "I call dibs! If any-one wants to share they gotta ask me first!"

"Mikey, you know very well you're gonna _have_ to share." Donny sighed as he and the others walked over to me. "And you can't pick and choose, they _gave_ us our rooms for the night remember?"

"Is this one of the one's that's our's?" I asked hopefully.

As if to answer my question the door opened, nearly throwing me off balance and a thin, dark face with large green eyes peered out of the room. "What's the racket about?"

"Er.. Whoops!" I said, giving the strange face what I hoped was a disarming smile before scrambling closer to Donny.

Leo watched me with a sigh before turning to the guy who'd opened his room door. "Sorry about that. We got lost."

The face made an irritable noise but said nothing, disappearing back into his room and closing the door behind him rather hard.

"Nice manners." Raph said, walking past me and Don to lead the way. I felt his hand smack me on the back of the head as he passed.

"Ow." I moaned at him, rubbing my head and pouting.

"C'mon cheese-head." He said, ignoring my complaint. "And make sure ta tell me which room yer takin' when we actually get to 'em so I can take the other one. You other guys decide who you wanna put up with for the night."

"Aww, What's the matter Raph?" I grinned at him. "You tired of my bright and sunny personality already?"

"If I get any more o' your 'Bright and Sunny personality' they're not gonna find ya till the _next_ tournament." He growled at me. "'Sides I'm bushed, and I've had enough o' your 'Battle Nexus Champion' crap for today."

"So you're ditching and one of us have to put up with it instead huh? Shrewd Raph." Donny said, giving him a frown, but he was smiling at the same time.

"Hey, think what ya want but as long as I get a good night's sleep I'm good." Raph replied, giving Donny a slight nudge.

I followed them, keeping step with Leo.

Day 1 was over and it'd been most awesome and legendary if I do so say myself! All 4 of us were still in the competition and, obviously, haven't had to face each other yet. I'd been doing very well so far I think. Some of the guys I had to beat were pretty big, or they really knew their way around a fight, or they were super fast. Some of them I could knock out with only a little bit of real fighting, but there were a few I had to come up with a smarter plan for than just 'Hit them and try not to get hit yourself.' Now and then I thought I was done for, but somehow my body'd managed to keep moving just long enough not to get clobbered and let me get in a clean blow and finish them off before they saw they were giving me a hard time and doubled their efforts.

There was this one girl who, I swear, was on some kind of speed drug. She moved so fast I couldn't follow her movement at all and for a while she was really giving me a beating. I was pretty sure she was gonna kick my butt and finish me, but when I realised her dash-attacks were always done in a straight line I managed to lure her into thinking I was ready for a final blow and then, when I saw her ready herself for her dash, side-stepped so she smashed into the wall of the enclosed fighting-ring behind me. All nice and neat, but she'd completely wiped me out and I was sure whoever was next would annihilate me and hoped it was some-one big and scary looking so I could at least pretend it was because they was just _that_ good and wasn't because I was tired. However once my fight was done and the Gyoji named me victor of my match, he told me to hang tight 'cause we had intermission coming up. Man! Of all the lucky breaks!

I spent intermission guzzling down a bottle of coloured liquid which I wasn't sure what it was. I didn't bring anything to drink but I managed to get Raph to buy me something from the marketplace thingy in the town, bribing him by saying I wouldn't say another word about being the Battle Nexus Champion for the rest of the day. It was worth it 'cause once I got some water-like stuff in me and could sit down for a little bit I was ready to get back at it.

The second half was harder, not only because the guys I had to fight seemed to be getting tougher, but also because I was really starting to get worn out. I don't have the stamina Raph and Leo have and there was at least 2 times where I almost cashed it in but somehow, by pure luck, was able to turn it around and found myself winning with either a do-or-die attack or just swinging out rashly, without timing my blow and, in doing so, caught my opponent off guard. When the matches for the day were declared over I almost couldn't believe it. If I'd gone even one or 2 matches more I knew I was either gonna get my head beat in or I was just gonna throw up my arms and go 'Right. That's it for me. Sorry guys but I'm done.'.

When they lowered the walls I was convinced at least one of my bros must've gotten themselves beat by now. No way they coulda lasted this long without some serious luck on their side! I almost gagged in surprise to see all 3 of them were still in the running. This kinda opened some problems for me. First of all, I couldn't brag that I'd gotten further than any of them, second it meant that I was getting tired and drained but maybe not because the competition was so hard. Maybe I should've paid more attention to training like Master Splinter told me to. I guess it was kinda too late for that now. But what was also a bummer is that when we get to the second day, I was probably gonna have to fight one of them and all 3 of them were getting so tired of me reminding them I was Champion they were all itching to 'teach me a lesson'. Maybe I shouldn't have bragging so much.

Then again maybe I just struggled today cause I was tired to begin with. I slept very little the night before because I was too excited for this thing! Maybe if I slept properly tonight I could recharge my batteries and it'd be easier tomorrow. Because of this I really didn't mind Raph pushing me to a different room than him. Raph snores and keeps me awake when we share a room together.

Because we were still in the running, we needed to spend the night for the last few rounds tomorrow. They didn't start as early as the matches did today, the opening speech was only set to start around 10:30 or so, so I was hoping I could sleep in if the others would let me.

Because of the crowd of people watching the fights, the Battle Nexus had reserved rooms in certain inns in the town surrounding the Arena for contestants. We couldn't choose where we wanted to sleep but it looked like a good place to spend the night, even if we were 2 to a room. We were grouped close together too, but whether that was simply because of something like alphabetical order by last name or if it was done on purpose by the Daimyo's pencil pushers I don't know. I didn't care though. I was just glad to be sharing a room with one of my brothers and not some big sweaty creepy guy. I have trouble sleeping in a room with a stranger. As in I find it _impossible_ to sleep in a room with a stranger. I dunno if that's a ninja thing, a mutant turtle thing, or just a Mikey thing. But I need a room to myself or share with some-one I know.

"Here." Donny said, turning and pointing to two doors opposite each other in the hallway. "These are our's"

"Dibs on this one! Dibs on this one!" I called quickly, putting my hand on one of them and pushing it open.

Inside were two futons lying next to each other, each one pushed against it's own wall with a small space between them. The wall opposite the door had a thin but long window which was currently shut with a wooden latch. The only other thing in the room was a large wooden wall which had several hooks and rings on it meant for storing weapons. Underneath it were two wooden Katana stands. Other than that the room was pretty empty, but it looked cosy enough.

I hurried inside and threw my backpack on one of the futons before flopping down on it, claiming it for myself.

"Good luck guys." I heard Raph say to Leo and Don before he disappeared through the other door.

Don sighed and turned to look at Leo. "Do you wanna flip for it?"

Leo shook his head. "No it's fine. I'll room with Mike."

"Alright!" I said with a broad smile. "The one who _doesn't_ stay up all night and read!"

Donny gave me an irritated glance before turning back to Leo. "Are you sure?"

Leo gave a small chuckle and nodded, walking in after me. "I'm sure I can handle it."

"Well alright." Don said, giving us both a smile. "Sleep well."

"You too." Leo said back, dropping has back-pack on the other futon. "And I do meansleep Don."

"I will I will." Donny said rolling his eyes. "Night."

He closed our door, leaving the two of us to bunk down for the night.

I pulled my back-pack closer and zipped it open, digging around inside for those gummi-bears. After some major excavation I found the bag at the bottom and pulled it free, opening it and beheading one of the squishy bears before eating the rest of him. I turned to Leo who was busy putting his katana away in one of the sword stands. I held the bag out in his general direction.

"Ya want some? They're not too sticky." I offered.

He turned to see what I was talking about before pulling a slight face at me. "Ugh. No thanks."

"We're doing good out there huh?" I said happily, flicking another one into my mouth.

"We're doing ok yeah." Leo said absently, coming back over to his futon, untying his mask as he went.

I frowned at him "Just ok? Dude where you even out there? We're all through to the finals! We're kicking butt!"

He gave a light shrug as he sat down and undid his elbow and knee pads. "I guess so yeah."

I pulled a face at him. "Geez Leo. Any-one would think you're not even here!"

Leo put his gear down next to the futon in the space between us. "Just... thinking about things."

I said nothing, pulling on another gummi bear until the thread of candy holding him together snapped. Leo undid his Katana strap before undoing his belt and pulling the covers open to get under them.

"What kind of things?" I asked after a rather long pause.

Leo lay down, rolling over to go to sleep. "Just some things that are bugging me."

I stared at the back of his shell, not sure if I should try and get a conversation going or just let it go so we could both get some sleep. Eventually I put the bag of Gummi-bears away again, unable to think of what to say.

"Turn off the light will you?" Leo said.

----------

I woke up, although not very well. For a few moments I wasn't sure if I was still asleep or not. The room I was in smelled strange, and I didn't see anything in it that looked familiar. I forgot where I was for a few seconds before my brain woke up enough to remind me.

The room was still pitch dark apart from some or other light shining in through the thin window I'd opened before going to bed. The night air from outside blew cooly into the room and I could detect all the strange smells and sensations that only seemed to appear after dark. I curled up a little tighter and tugged the blankets closer around myself, closing my eyes to go back to sleep.

I heard a noise coming from behind me in the direction of Leo's futon.

After a few minutes I heard the soft 'Thwump' of blankets being thrown aside, followed by the painfully familiar sound of a belt being tied. After that, soft footsteps crossing the room. They were silent, deliberately trying not to be heard. The room brightened for a few moments as the door opened and the light from the hall cut a line across the room before it went dark again.

I lay silently for a few moments. I yawned and realised I'd closed my eyes again. Perhaps Leo needed a drink of water or something. I sometimes got that at night.

He'd be back soon.

I fell asleep again.

----------

I woke up again but this time it was morning. Not only that but something was giving me a meaningful nudge from behind.

"Hey Mikey! Wake up already!"

I groaned and tried hiding under the blankets. "C'mon... You gotta be kidding me..."

There was a yank and a sudden blast of light and cold air as the covers disappeared. I yelped and sat up to see a floating blanket in front of me with Raph's head behind it. He leered down at me.

"Normally I'd just let ya sleep through the whole thing so I don' hafta listen to yer yammerin', but I promised you a butt-whuppin' today remember?" He said, giving me a toothy grin.

I grumbled meaningless words as I rubbed my eyes. "You're in a good mood." I remarked.

"Ah, quiet yer whinin'" I felt the weight of the blankets plop down on top of my head. "If ya want somethin' ta eat before we head to the arena ya better get dressed and hurry up. We're all waitin' down-stairs. Master Splinter's come to give us some last minute Sensei-type advice."

I pulled the blankets off of myself and blinked up at Raph as he turned to leave the room. My eyes drifted to the futon next to mine. It was neatly made, as if no-one'd slept there last night at all. I turned back to Raph.

"Leo downstairs?" I asked.

Raph turned in the doorway to give me a confused stare. "No. He's out pickin' daisies in the field. Of course he's downstairs! And you're gonna be in trouble if you're not down there in 5 minutes!" He disappeared from view.

I blinked at Leo's futon as I searched around for my bandanna. He must've come back while I was asleep. I didn't even hear him make the bed.

We ate some weird bread thingies with stuff in the middle and drank some strange hot bitter drinks. Master Splinter gave us some advice as we ate. And by that I mean he told us what part of our fights sucked the day before and what we needed to do better with today. He told Donny he was being too hesitant before attacking every now and then. Don said he was trying to evaluate his opponent but apologised anyway. Splinter told him evaluating is fine, but he took too long in a few instances and that nearly got him in trouble a few times. He had a lot of things to say to me. He told me I wasn't paying as much attention to some of the people I was facing and that I was being far too reckless. I wasn't gonna tell him I was only doing so 'cause I'd been exhausted near the end of the thing and merely said I was sorry. Besides, I'm sure he knew I was tired. He was watching the whole time after all.

He told Raph he was going to the harder attacks too quickly and needed to save them for the final blow otherwise he'd tire himself out too soon. Raph said he'd try. I might've imagined it but I thought I saw him give me a small, evil smile once master Splinter looked away. I quickly hid behind my cup of hot bitter stuff and pretended not to see it.

Splinter told Leo that he was doing ok, but he seemed rather distant yesterday and wasn't focusing properly on the fight which led to a few mistakes that could've easily cost him the match if he hadn't corrected them in the nick of time.

"I'm sorry Sensei. I'll try and pay more attention today." Leo said, ripping a bread thingy in two.

"It is not only that my son." Splinter said, a concerned frown on his face. "There were some minor mistakes you made during certain matches which I know are beneath you. Mistakes I know you should not be making." He made a small noise as he stared at Leo. "You need to keep a clear mind and reel in your focus Leonardo. Simply relying on your instincts and skill is not enough. You must keep your attention to the match at hand."

Leo gave a shamed looking nod before he lifted his head again, shaking off his 'Kid getting reprimanded by his dad' look. "I will do better today Sensei."

Master Splinter gave a nod, relaxing and giving us all a warm smile. He pushed himself up off the table we were sharing, collecting his cane as he did so. "I am very proud of you all. You have done much better than I ever could have imagined at the young age you are at." He beamed at us. "Continue making your father proud."

We waved as he left to meet up with the Daimyo. I was grinning widely to myself, making it difficult to finish my plate of stuffed bread thingies. Donny and Raph were babbling excitedly to each other, getting each other worked up for the first match, and how they both were looking forward to beating up the other.

"Here, d'you want this?" Leo said, pushing his plate with his last 2 bread thingies on it towards me. "I'm not that hungry."

"Oh sweet! Thanks Leo!" I shot him a smile before gulping those down too.

----------

My heart was pounding so fast it felt like it was about to blow a gasket and shut itself down. I held my nun-chucks up, keeping them in their spin and making sure they whirled just fast enough without losing complete control over them. A nun-chuck is not a weapon meant for pin-point precision. It 's an unpredictable weapon that you don't so much control as you worked with it and made it go where you want, making the rest up as you do. It was a very fine balance between reigning it in and making it do exactly what you want, but not pulling its leash so tight that there wasn't any opportunity for a last minute change of plans without clobbering yourself.

In front of me stood a very large, very hairy giant. He had short, stout legs but each one looked as thick as a tree-stump. Above it rose an enormous distended stomach and above that a chest like a wine-vat. Somewhere above that rested a flat head with two black eyes glaring down at me. Long, cow-like ears hung on either side of it. On one shoulder rested a giant club which I swear looked like it was completely made out of limestone or some other fancy word for 'rock'. He was wearing large, bronze bracelet type things on his wrists, and was currently glaring down at me with no room for confusion about what he was intending to do to me. He must've been at least 10 feet tall. I didn't know. I'm not good at guessing things like height and weight and stuff. But I knew I was 5'2", and that this guy could've used me as a footstool if he wanted to.

I gulped away at the ball in my throat, trying to stare up at him and not get blinded by the sun burning down behind his head. I could see the air distort itself around his shoulders as heat rose from him.

The top of my head and my brow were tingling and I could feel something trickling down the sides of my face from my temples. It smelled like dust and sweat and big-ass cow guy. My shoulders and arms felt hot, and had I not been so focused on the guy standing in front of me I would've been more interested when I noticed I'd broken out in a few more freckles than I usually had.

The cow-guy snorted at me as he shrugged his club off his shoulder.

I took a shaky breath. I was tired, my calves were aching, my hands were starting to feel raw and I could feel the sting of a friction burn on the bottom of my arm.

There were no walls surrounding us now. Just the roar of the crowd and the giant expanse of the arena.

The Gyoji moulded himself into existence between us, holding up his fan-thingy with the two knockers on it.

"Final Match Between Michelangelo from 3rd Earth and Bubalis from Bovidia!"

He twisted his wrist, making the knockers 'tum-tum' against his fan.

The cow dude swung his Club in an arc as he leaned forward and charged at me. I dove out of the way with a yelp, forgetting any concept of counter-attacking. I heard him thunder past me before turning around and, immediately, making for me again. For a big guy he was fast on his feet. He brought his club down, determined to turn me into a Mikey pancake.

I managed to flip out of the way just in time. I didn't even bother to check if he was following me, I immediately did another jump, doubling back the way I'd just come. I felt the air and the heat as he struck out to where I had been just milliseconds before.

This guy was out for blood! We were in the final match and yet he's behaving as if he's fresh from the showers.

I wrinkled my snout. Well. Maybe not _directly_ fresh from the showers.

Sitting around thinking about the guy's smell nearly cost me the whole deal as he launched himself at me again. I gave a yowl and slid out of danger in the only direction I could. Right between his legs, jumping upright behind him.

My chest burned as I panted, using the heartbeat of a pause in which he had to turn around before attacking me again to try and figure out some kind of weak point. There was no way for me to wear this guy down! He was twice, almost three times my size, weighed about the same as a hummer and was moving as if he'd been downing energy soda all day! He wasn't a contestant, he was a house with legs! There was no way I was gonna win this trying to tire him out or beat him down. I needed to find a weak spot. A vulnerable point. Something that'd give me enough time to get in a 'fatal' blow and finish this as fast as I could or I could kiss that title good-bye!

He swung his club, this time in a downwards arc. I wasn't even sure how, but I managed to roll myself out of the way just in time.

This was just a contest. It was just a game. The second I slipped up and his club came too close I would get zapped out of the arena and away to safety where my bros would make fun of me for not being able to bring down the _enormous monster cow demon! _But even though I knew I was in no real danger apart from some scuffs and bruises, my body wouldn't buy it.

Every instinct and subconscious thought in my head was screaming at me that I was in mortal danger, that I needed to turn and run away to safety or I was gonna die. I silently thanked Master Splinter for all the hundred of times he's taught us how to suppress our fears, how to make them work for us instead of blinding us. How to channel those feelings to make our movements faster and our judgements quicker. If it wasn't for his lessons I would've buckled under my instincts long ago and just run away.

I knew I was scared, I just wasn't letting myself feel it.

My adrenaline charged mind threw up sentences and speeches as I dove away from yet another large swing from the club which connected with the ground where I was standing, throwing up dirt and sand into the air like a smokescreen, getting into my eyes and mouth and nostrils. Leo's voice from long ago telling me to focus. Splinter telling us he was proud of us. Raph telling me he was gonna take my Championship away from me. Splinter telling me I needed more focus. I needed to focus. I needed to look at this threat and not see the threat. I needed a solution.

I coughed and choked, staring at the brownish silhouette as the cow-guy twisted himself around, trying to find me in the dust-cloud he'd created. I'd dove away so quickly I was lying almost on my back, low to the ground, the dust and sand swirling over me, hiding me from his view.

I wasn't that far from him, but I saw him spin, focusing on a completely different part of the arena, trying to pinpoint where I was.

_He can't see very well._

I dunno if the voice in my head was my own or some merciful guardian angel who decided the joke was getting old and I needed some help.

I rolled onto my feet, picking up a dropped nun-chuck and, keeping as low to the ground as I could, rounded him, trying to get to his blind-side. My eyes were glued to his head as I took note of where his attention was.

Just as I got myself in a good spot he twisted around, completely ruining what had just seconds ago been an open shot for me. My stomach lurched for a second but I fought it down. I chewed on my bottom lip as I tried to think. I threw one of my nun-chucks in a specific direction. It clattered and bounced against the dirt ground.

The giant cow-man immediately turned, tensing himself and raising his club at the ready in the direction the noise had come from. He didn't charge it, waiting for me to attack first so he could get a clear view of me.

Too bad I was in the other direction.

My eyes dropped to his legs, tensed and locked in place as he waited. Those short, thick legs supporting all that bulk. They were obviously as strong as rock. But they were still made of flesh, and they were the only things keeping him upright.

I tensed, then leapt.

I shot my hand forward, my remaining nun-chuck gripped tightly as I sent it arcing, the hard wood slamming itself into the back of the cow-man's ankle, right where his Achilles tendon connected to his heel.

He gave a loud bellow, stumbling and dropping to one knee as his balance was thrown off. I launched myself upwards, grabbing a foothold on his back to push myself forward again before swinging downwards, my nun-chuck aimed at the spot right between his large, dangling ears.

There was a brilliant flash of blue, and my fall back to the ground suddenly became much higher than it had been a few seconds ago.

I hit the dirt, literally, but instinctively rolled as I landed before springing to my feet, my eyes darting around frantically to see where my opponent had gone.

The dust was starting to settle, but I couldn't see him at all. I spun in place, trying to find him. But he was gone.

"Final Round goes to; Michelangelo of 3rd Earth!" I heard a voice call.

There was an explosion of sound that startled me.

I looked around blinkingly, suddenly aware of how hard I was panting and how much my heart was trying to break my plastron from the inside.

People cheered. I heard my name being called.

I smiled. I could taste sand but I didn't care. I smiled widely.

I threw my arm in the air.

The crowd cheered louder.

----------

The sun was low in the sky. My limbs were aching but I ignored them. My arms felt burny and hot. I think maybe I'd gotten sun burnt. I didn't mind at all. I don't think I'd ever been sunburned before. It sounded interesting. The wind felt cool as the large heads of statues that broke long ago made long shadows across our path as we walked back to where we first portal-jumped. I was leading the way, holding my trophy over my head just in case the others hadn't gotten a good look at it yet.

"Huh?" I said, grinning widely at Raph.

"Don't." He said in a dangerous tone of voice.

"Huh?? _Huh??_" I said, dancing from one foot to the other in front of him.

"Mikey I swear. If I hear one word outta you. One single _breath_. One hint that you're even _thinkin'_ of sayin' something, and I'm takin' that thing and I am smashin' it to pieces." His eyes flashed.

The threat was a believable one. Not something big and creative to sound even scarier than anything in real life would be. I put the trophy under my arm instead, trotting backwards so I could see all of them.

"Did ya at least see me out there?! Man I thought I was dead! And not in a gripping a wound going 'Ah! Ow! I'm dead!' kinda way! No! I mean like on the floor, gargling blood, _dead!_"

Leo winced.

"Gotta admit." Donny said, giving me a bright smile. "You had me biting my nails near the end there."

"Yeah." Raph grumbled bitterly. "I guess you did kinda clean up."

I beamed brightly at him. Raphael praise was high praise.

My smile faded slightly as I fell into step next to him. "Hey, how come I never got ta face against you Raph? I was sure we were gonna get teamed up at some point. Come to think of it." I twisted my head around to look at Leo. "How come I didn't see _you_?"

There was a small pause in which no-one said anything.

"Raph got a shot in and beat me." Leo said after a few moments.

"Really?!" I said, turning to Raph with a broad smile. "Way ta go Raph!"

"Save it." He snapped, giving Leo a resentful look. "Leo wasn't in that fight. I dunno where he _was_ but there was no way he was payin' attention ta me. I've had Sparrin' matches that were closer calls than that."

My smile faded as I turned to look back at Leo. He said nothing, pretending not to have heard. I swallowed and turned back to Raph, trying to work up my smile again.

"Even so! How far'd ya get after that?"

"The Match after Leo's" Raph grumbled. "I couldn't focus and got beat."

I sunk a little, tightening my grip on my trophy. I swallowed. I turned my head towards Donny.

"How about you?" I said, managing a smile.

He gave me a sheepish smile back. "I was out before these two." He said.

I nodded, turning to the front again, walking with my brothers, still fighting down the taste of grit and sand in my mouth. The air was cold and my legs and arms were sore. My skin burned slightly and made me feel uncomfortable and hot.

"What are you going to do with your trophy Michelangelo?" Master Splinter's voice spoke up.

I turned to blink at him, surprised that any-one actually _wanted_ me to talk about my win. I smiled happily, holding it up so he could get a better look at it.

"I had the old one on top of the TV!" I said happily. "I was thinking of putting it there again! That way I can see it all the time!" I grinned brightly, thinking about it. "It makes me feel super awesome when I'm playing video games and win! I see my trophy and I'm like 'Yeah! Still got it baby! Nexus Champion!'"

I flinched instinctively, giving Raph a sideways glance. He made a noise and rolled his eyes but made no move to clobber me.

Master Splinter gave a chuckle. "Then put it there my son."

I smiled happily. "Thanks Sensei!"

"Enh. You earned it." Donny said, giving me a smile.

"Yeah." Raph said as if some-one was forcing him into doing so. "Good job bro."

Leo said nothing, but he smiled at me proudly.

----------

"Here. I dunno where you found it."

I turned to see Leo holding out the camera towards me. I frowned, pushing aside my backpack from my bed and taking the camera instead.

"What's this for?" I asked, giving Leo a confused look.

"We took it with remember?" He said, giving me a smile and a soft shrug. "Sorry we couldn't use it."

I felt my face fall a little. I dipped my head, staring at the black machine my hands. It's flash bulb stared back at me, as if waiting for me to say something to it directly. I looked back up. My big brother was turning to walk away.

"Leo?" I said to stop him. He turned back to me.

"Are you ok?" I asked hesitantly. I felt my hands tighten on the plastic slightly.

Leo thought for a few moments, standing silently in front of me as his eyes stared at my floor. He shook his head, but more to clear his thoughts than to say 'no'.

"I'm worried. And I don't know what to do about it." he said after a few minutes.

I stared at him quietly. I licked my lips nervously before I spoke again. "D'you wanna talk about it?" I wasn't use to being the one to try and get some-one else to open up.

Leo shook his head again, but this time it really was to say 'no'. "Lemme think about it for a little more ok?" He said, turning to give me a reassuring smile.

It didn't make me feel much better, but I gave a nod. I probably wasn't very good at talking about serious stuff anyway. Leo's smile perked a little as he turned and left my room. I heard him head down the hall in the direction of the dojo.

I watched the empty doorway for a few moments before I looked down at the unused camera in my hands. I clicked the lens-cap on and off.

**Xxxxx**

_I didn't have the heart to take Mikey's Championship away from him. And I figured if I was gonna have the Battle Nexus in this story, if only for a few chapters, I needed to have at least 1 properly described fight. And of course, it could only be Mikey's_


	6. Working Out a Plan

_I don't own TMNT or UY._

**Xxxxx**

I actually slept last night. Although whether it was from pure exhaustion or if I actually managed to relax enough to get to sleep is any-one's guess. The night we spent at the Battle Nexus I didn't sleep a single wink. I was tired all right, but I just couldn't get myself to calm down and fall sleep.

The adrenaline from the rounds I'd fought in might have had something to do with it, but it was no secret to me that fear and worry had me completely under their control at the moment. I seemed to be thinking nothing but terrible thoughts, and any words that even remotely sounded like they were talking about violence or bloodshed or injury sent me reeling and fueled whatever gruesome image my imagination had already been building by itself. Every time I closed my eyes and managed to start drifting off I was bombarded by a mental image of blood and I snapped wide awake again.

Eventually I just gave up and got out of bed. Even if there was a chance that I could get to sleep, I wasn't sure the half-awake pictures my brain was deciding to show me was worth it. I'd put on my belt and bandanna and left the room, making sure not to wake Mikey as I left. At first I thought about taking a walk around the town and seeing what it looked like when most of the people were asleep or at the very least indoors, but decided against it. It's not that walking around by myself after dark was dangerous or anything. It probably was, but I run around after dark all by myself in the middle of New York City. I'm pretty sure I could handle whatever a town in a peaceful dimension could throw at me.

However instead I merely went down-stairs to the 'Inn' section of the inn. I ordered myself something hot to drink and did some hard thinking.

So far, I'd managed to distract myself with the tournament and the matches and my brothers' excitement buzzing around me. I was glad to see them so happy about this. It made me happy to see them enjoy it as much as they were, even when Raph was threatening Mikey with serious bodily harm. Seeing my brothers safe, happy and content was always the highest payment I could receive. Not only as the leader but also as the eldest brother.

I remember swirling the hot liquid in my cup and thinking to myself; 'I guess it extends to people outside the family too.'

Where are you Usagi?

Are you still safe? Are you with your own friends? Are you alone somewhere?

I sat there, trying to figure out how I felt about his absence now that the initial shock and anxiety of hearing he was not there had worn off. The blow had been a bad one. I'd wanted to just call it quits right there and storm off to find Usagi myself. I think the only reason I didn't was because I saw the look on my brother's faces. They were still focused on this tournament, and competing in it was important to them. I had a hunch that if I dropped out to go off on a misadventure they'd probably follow me.

I wondered if they'd resent me for it. Probably not. They'd forgiven me so many screw ups and bad decisions before, I don't see why this one would've made them hate me. But I knew that if I ruined this for them I wouldn't have been happy with myself at all. So I stayed.

But now I'd calmed down enough to think rationally again, and I realised my feelings hadn't lessened at all. I was gonna see this tournament through to the end, and I was going to do my best and aim for the title as much as I could, but somehow, my heart just wasn't in it. It suddenly felt like a hurdle I had to jump before I could focus on what I really wanted to do.

I wasn't sure what it was I 'Really wanted to do' though. Before I could give it some proper thought Donny had appeared and I was shocked to see it was morning already. I pretended like I'd just woken up earlier than him. I didn't want my brothers knowing I was on no sleep.

It cost me in the end though. I was able to beat the first handful of matches, but once I faced off against Raph it all fell to pieces. Raph knew my moves too well, and he instantly tell I was making mistakes and how he could use them to his advantage. The match was pretty decent, but I knew it wasn't nearly as close a call as either of us would've liked.

Raph was furious with me for it. He hadn't said so but I could see it. He was treating me with that icy cold demeanour he saved for the conversations he had right before he completely flew off the handle and blew up at you. I knew he was mad at me for not giving him a proper match, but I almost felt like he was also angry at me for somehow making him lose the match he had after me. I didn't think it was my fault at all. Raph was angry that I didn't put up a real fight, and I guess maybe he was too frustrated with me to focus on his next opponent, leading to him getting beat himself. So I may have been the cause, but we were trained to keep our focus regardless of the situation and keep our eyes on the enemy at hand.

Yeah right. Listen to me. Criticizing Raph for something I was guilty of even more than him.

Regardless, we'd come home that night and after cleaning ourselves up and some supper we pretty much all went to bed. Raph was avoiding me but at least he hadn't felt the need to start anything yet. He was either going to lose some steam after some sleep, or just save it for tomorrow when he had more energy to give me a proper argument. I wasn't looking forward to it.

Mikey pretty much dominated the conversation for the rest of the evening. He was really stoked with himself and who could blame him? The first Championship win had been, let's face it, a fluke. And the rematch after that was just a single match. It may have counted against his opponent Klah, but winning a final match after and endless stream of fights was more than just a win of that single match, but of every match before it. It's a test of endurance. Mike had every reason to be proud. He'd set the trophy in front of himself when we ate supper in front of the TV, but I was surprised, and not the least bit relieved, that he seemed to be keeping a lid on the whole 'Battle Nexus Champion' thing finally. Perhaps winning the tournament the way it was meant to be won finally taught him a life-lesson about being humble. Or maybe he was just too tired and we'd hear all about it tomorrow.

After giving Mikey back the camera I'd gone to the dojo, hoping I could try and clear my mind so I could get some real rest that night and not be plagued by paranoid visions. However after just 5 or 6 minutes I realised I was far too exhausted for any kind of meditation and went to bed. I remember getting under the covers and lying down, but I don't actually remember falling asleep. I just woke up and it was the next morning already.

I sat up, feeling surprisingly good. A quick check of my alarm told me it was close to 9 am. I'd overslept slightly, but not by much. I got up and got on my gear before heading to the bathroom. I could smell the unmistakable scent of eggs being scrambled. Mikey was up too. After freshening up I went to go see if he'd saved anything for me.

"Hey!" He said with a bright smile when he saw me, waving a spatula dangerously in my direction.

"Good morning, I said back to him and Donny who was sitting at the table, poking the yellow wobbly things in his plate. I sat down next to him.

"It's not like you to sleep in." Don said, giving me a smile. "It takes it out of you huh?"

"What?" I blinked before my brain kicked me and reminded me where we were yesterday. "Oh! Oh yeah right!"

"Geez! The guy needs brain-fuel pronto!" Mikey proclaimed, coming over and slapping a plate in front of me before dumping a sloppy pile of eggs onto it.

I laughed, pushing the chair back so as not to get splattered with steaming yoke. "Alright alright! Calm down Mikey!"

Mikey gave me a bright grin before putting a hand on his hip and cocking it rather disturbingly. "And you better clear your plate young man or no dessert for you!" He said, waving his spatula in time with his words.

"Right, and what is 'dessert' exactly?" I asked as I dug my fork into the mush on my plate.

"Well... I haven't really made any." Mikey confessed. "But if I did you wouldn't get any!"

"Uh huh." I said, taking a bite out of my breakfast. It wasn't half bad.

"You better just humour him Leo." Donny said, eating from his own plate.

"Don't worry. I'm kinda hungry." I said, focusing on my food.

"Master Splinter says we can take the day off training." Don said as a way to make conversation. "He says he thinks we got enough practice the last 2 days. However he did say that when we start practicing again tomorrow he's worked out a new routine for us because he thinks we made some dumb mistakes in our matches."

"Not _all_ of us!" Mikey said rather loudly, turning to beam at the two of us. "Some of us _won!"_

"Don't think he's gonna let you wriggle your way out of it though!" Donny said, grinning back. "You realise, now that you've proven you're more than just a doofus, he's gonna be drilling you extra hard so you can reach your 'full potential'!"

"What?" Mikey's smile vanished and he blinked wide-eyed at Don.

Donny nodded, a small twisted smile spreading on his face as he leaned back in his seat. "Oh yes. Now that you've shown you actually _can_ kick butt when you put your mind to it he's gonna be giving you all kinds of hard exercises to try and get you to pull it off more often."

"That's not fair!" Mikey wailed. "I nearly_ killed _ myself out there winning this thing! It wasn't easy!"

"Well," Donny said in an exaggerated tone of voice suggesting he knew exactly everything Master Splinter thinks. "In that case he's gonna train you extra hard so that you can achieve that level of fighting _without_ killing yourself. Either way, you're gonna be getting it doubly hard tomorrow!"

Mikey gave a long-drawn out groan at this. "D'you think it's too late to give up my title?"

"I don't think that'd help." Donny grinned, enjoying his game. "After all, even if you didn't win, you still technically beat the rest of us. Fair and Square."

"Mm!" I made a noise to catch their attention as I swallowed my mouthful to talk. "That reminds me. Where's Raph?"

"Oh him." Mikey snorted, as if I just mentioned a stray dog or something. "He's breaking the rules by using the dojo to train on our day off!"

Don blew a sigh at Mikey before turning to me. "I wouldn't bug him if I were you Leo. He's kind of in a bad mood."

"More than usual anyway." Mikey added, licking the last of the eggs off his spatula.

"Not to mention I think he's kind of annoyed with you." Donny said. "Not that I agree with him." He added quickly. "I'm just saying I think he's irritated that you lost so erm.. ...er..."

"Easily?" I finished for him.

Donny gave a lop-sided grin and shrugged. "Sorry Leo but, from the view I had in the healer's room it didn't really look like you were putting up much of a fight."

"Yeah well whadd'ya expect?' Mikey said, dumping his spatula into the sink rather loudly. "Running around in the middle of the night before a match isn't exactly the smartest move. Even _I_ know that."

I nearly choked on my eggs, blinking wide-eyed at Mike. I had no idea he'd been awake when I left the room at the Battle nexus.

And of course he just had to blurt it out in front of Donny.

I saw Don blink at Mikey before his face slowly and carefully folded itself into a light frown as he turned to me. "You stayed up?"

I stabbed at my eggs lightly. "Bad dreams."

I saw his eyes bore into me as he slowly put two and two together. "You didn't sleep at all." He said. It wasn't a question.

I took the last bite of my eggs and put my fork down. "I tried. But I just couldn't do it." I sighed pushing my chair back a little. "I'm kinda going nuts here Don."

Donny stared at me quietly, his frown lightening into one of concern. Mikey came and sat down in one of the open chairs, his eyes glued to me as well. I blew a sigh softly.

"Look, I know it's paranoid behaviour, but honestly? I'm going our of my mind with worry here. I don't know what to do about it, and I tried keeping it under wraps for the tournament but it just kinda got the better of me. I didn't mean to give Raph such a lame fight. I swear."

"Shouldn't you be telling him that?" Donny said kindly.

I gave a nod, getting up. "Yeah. You're right."

I turned and started making for the dojo.

"Hey Leo!" Mikey called after me. "Did you sleep last night?!"

"Like a rock!" I called back, exiting the kitchen and walking across the main room in the direction of the Dojo.

I walked into the larger room. It wasn't had to spot Raph. He was dealing with his frustration in his usual way, by giving his punching bag a serious beat-down. I wasn't even sure if he'd heard me come into the room.

"Raph!" I called to get his attention as I came over. I could feel myself mentally preparing myself for a classic Raph confrontation.

"What d'you want?" he growled, not letting up from his pounds on the bag.

"I wanted to talk to you about yesterday." I said bluntly.

"What about yesterday?" He said.

"Come on Raph." I sighed. "You know very well what I'm talking about."

"No." He said, giving his bag a roundhouse kick before turning to glare at me instead. "I don't."

I rubbed at my temples irritably, trying to fight down the growing irritation. "Look Raph, I'm sorry if you feel cheated about how things worked out with the match yesterday. I know I kinda sucked out there, but I swear I wasn't doing it on purpose."

"Oh I know _that_" Raph snapped. "I knew that even when I was fightin' ya!"

I frowned at him. "Then I don't get it Raphael. You're obviously annoyed about something and I'd be an idiot not to realise it's got something to do with me. So what? What did I do this time exactly?"

"It's because yer so block-headed!" He growled, folding his arms and glaring at me. "I dunno what you were doin' in that fight Leo! It was like you were drugged or somethin'! You were doin' stuff a 3 year old wouldn't be dumb enough ta do!"

Raph was exaggerating and he knew it. I felt a slight prickle under my skin at this. I knew I wasn't at my best yesterday, but I also knew I was still better than more than a handful of other contestants. Raph didn't need to be so harsh. Nevertheless I fought down my feelings.

"Well I'm sorry. I really am. I didn't sleep the night before and I couldn't give you a proper fight and I'm sorry if you feel I somehow cheated you out of something. But I didn't mean to." My voice sounded stiff but at least I was able to get the words out without adding to the argument.

"So ya didn't sleep huh?" Raph said. His eyes narrowed slightly and I saw his shoulders stiffen. This news seemed to get him even more annoyed.

"Look, what do you want from me Raph?" I finally caved. "It's not like I deliberately stayed up the whole night _just_ to give you a weak fight! Or is this about the fight after that which I'm sure you're convinced is also my fault somehow!"

"That's 'cause it _was_ your fault!" He threw a finger at me angrily.

I gaped at him. I mean I'd been thinking he was somehow blaming me on some level for losing the match after mine but to hear him say it so bluntly. My shock was quickly replaced by anger.

"How?!" I yelled at him, throwing up my hands. "How was that my fault?! If you couldn't get your emotions in check and was mad at me for not giving you a worthy fight then that's your problem! Not mine!"

"You honestly think I give a crap about not gettin' ta beat your ass fair and square?!" He spat back. "That ain't what this is about!"

I felt my words stumble at this. I glared at him in confusion. "What the hell are you talking about Raph?"

"I'm _talkin'_ about you!" He said, his voice rising a little. "I took one look at ya in that fight and I knew somethin' wasn't right! You were makin' stupid mistakes, slow ta act and going through your routine like textbook! No life, no thinkin' nothin'! Just goin' from position A to Position B! I thought you were psychin' me out at first but then I realised you really were screwen' up! And then when I beat ya I was so messed up tryin' ta figure out why the heck you were so out of it I couldn't focus on my own fight! I was so worried about you and your Goddamn issues I let the guy make a joke outta me!"

I grit my teeth, unsure of what exactly he was saying to me. "I still don't see how that's my fault!"

"Because you never _talk_ to us!" Raph spat angrily. "Ever since ya heard the rabbit was missin' ya've been actin' like the walking dead and any-one with two brain cells ta rub together can see yer worried sick but you're not _sayin'_ anything! You're just sittin' there and doin' stupid shit like not sleepin' and trying ta fight in a damn tournament and not lettin' any of us know how messed up you're obviously feelin'! And then ya have the nerve ta say it ain't your fault when I start gettin' so screwed up thinkin' about you that I make stupid mistakes of my own!"

He made and aggravated noise and threw a fist against his punching bag again, albeit a half-hearted one.

"Ya shoulda just said you weren't up to it and stepped down." He growled darkly. "Instead ya just clam up and act like we're idiots who won't realise somethin's up."

I could still feel the frown on my face, but it was desperately trying to fade away. I tried to keep it where it was, not wanting Raph to see how hard he hit the nail on the head. "Mikey still won." I grumbled, although I couldn't summon up the same level of anger.

Raph gave a loud noise of disgust. "Don' remind me."

When he didn't say anything else I found myself forced to give a reply. "Well... I'm sorry. I didn't realise I was worrying you."

"You better be sorry." Raph growled, giving me a dark look.

I gave a huff, feeling my irritation bubbling back up. "Well, if that's all it is then saying sorry is all I can do Raph. So sorry, but I don't know what else you want from me."

I turned to leave, no longer in the mood to try and play this game with him.

"Ya wanna know what ya can do?" He growled after me.

I gave an aggravated breath and turned back to face him. "What?"

He was still glaring at me angrily. "Ya can stop keepin' yer trap shut and actually say what's botherin' you."

"What's the point?" I said, turning to face him again. "You obviously have it all figured out so well why d'you want me to say it?!?

"Because I _ain't_ got it all figured out." He said back, but his voice refused to try and out-shout mine. "What exactly are you so freaked over?"

"You just told me yourself!" I said back, unable to control the volume of my voice. "I'm worried about Usagi! In case you forgot he didn't show up!"

"So what?" Raph snapped. "We already said it was probably somethin' ta do with his dimension and stuff! Why are ya so spooked?"

I could feel the muscles in my shoulders tighten. "Are you serious?! D'you honestly think sitting around just coming up with hypothetical reasons is gonna make me feel better?! I'm worried sick here!"

"You're not tellin' me why Leo!" Raph snapped, sounding angry again.

"Because he told me he'd let me know if he was alright and he hasn't!" I yelled back. "He told me he'd let me know he's unhurt and he hasn't! And I was sure that it'd be ok because we'd see him at the Battle Nexus and we didn't! And that _scares_ me Raph! It scares me because _I_ don't know why he's not contacting us! Especially when he told me he would! And I keep trying to come up for reasons why he wouldn't and the only reasons I can come up with are bad ones!" I shook my head at this, as if to deny my own thoughts and fears. "I'm going out of my mind because _I_ don't know if he's just unable to contact us or if there's something seriously wrong! I'm afraid something bad might've happened! Like he'd gotten seriously hurt or if he's been killed!"

Once the word left my mouth my anger dropped off me.

"My God Raph... What if he's dead?"

"Hey woah." Raph said, unfolding his arms and putting up his hands quickly, walking over to me. "Relax bro. We don't know nothin'."

"Somehow, that doesn't make me feel an better." I said, clenching my fists.

"Take it easy." Raph said, his voice calming down with each word. "I didn't mean ta push ya that hard. I just wanted ta know what you're thinkin' exactly."

"I'm thinking I may very well have lost my best friend." I said. Some very deep part of me was horrified at myself for even saying it.

Raph made a meaningless noise. "Alright. I get it. But pull it together ok?"

I took a deep breath, calming myself down again. "Sorry." I said dumbly. "I didn't mean to let it get to me so bad."

"Ain't your fault." Raph shrugged. "But ya gotta start tellin' us stuff like this Leo. Makin' us all worried and confused ain't helpin'. You're doin' the same thing he is."

I wanted to protest at this, but I bit my tongue. Mostly because I knew Raph had a point and if I argued, he could very easily convince me that I was being just as bad to him and the others as Usagi was being to me, and I didn't even want to think about having that kind of guilt on my shell.

"So what now?" I asked. I wasn't sure if he wanted me to spill my guts to the rest of the family or not. I knew it was my choice if I wanted to talk to the others but I felt, having pushed me this far, Raph had a right to give me his opinion.

"You tell me." He said.

I frowned at him. "Do you want me to tell the others?"

"I want you ta tell me what ya wanna do with this whole mess." He said.

"I dunno Raph.." I said, locking my hands behind my head as I tried to think. "I really don't know what to do. I mean, should we just keep waiting and hope some news gets to us eventually? I dunno if I could last that long."

"So what _do_ you wanna do?" He said.

"I don't know." I said again, unlocking my hands again. I ran one over my head, giving a hollow laugh. "What I'd _like_ to do is go find him so I can pile-drive him for making me worry like this."

"So? what's the problem with that plan?" Raph said.

I snapped my eyes back to him, not sure if he was joking or not. He stared back at me, his arms crossed. His expression was dead serious.

I gave my head a very light shake. "C'mon Raph. It's not like we can just show up on his doorstep and go 'Hey! Haven't heard from you in a while so we thought we'd drop in!'"

Raph gave a shrug at this. "Why not? People drop in on us all the time. 'Sides, if ya don't you're gonna kill yerself with worrying anyway. Just get it outta your system and go find him. Better than sittin' here on our thumbs waitin' for somethin' which might not even show up right?"

I pulled a face at him. "It's not like crashing at April's or Casey's place Raph. The guy's from a whole 'nother dimension. Not to mention he's always on the move. Even if I _did_ go there to find him, tracking him down is easier said than done. He's got a whole country to hide in. D'you have any idea what the chances are of even running into him? And this is if nothing's happened to him. I don't even want to think about how I might find him if he's hurt or.. ...hurt." I said, unable to go down that line of thinking a second time.

"Bet the chances are a lot better of you findin' him there than just sittin' around waitin' here." He said.

I made a noise at this, thinking it over. I knew Raph had a very good point, but I just couldn't imagine myself running off to a completely different universe all by myself trying to track down one person in an entire country which I'd only been to once, very briefly. Besides, what was I gonna say to the others? Just tell them I got sick of waiting so I was gonna disappear for who knows how long? Why did _that_ sound familiar? I seemed to slowly be making a habit of taking long trips to distant countries for undetermined periods of time by myself.

"C'mon Leo." Raph said when I kept quiet for too long. "Ya just said that's what ya wanted ta do."

I gave a long sigh. "I said I wanted to find him. Not that I wanted to leave and go away again."

"Yeah, but ya can't really do one and not the other huh?" Raph said.

I cocked a brow and pulled a face at him. "If I didn't know any better I'd say you were trying to get rid of me."

"Ha!" Raph gave a single burst of a laugh. "Yeah right! First of all if I wanted ta get rid of ya I wouldn't waste my time with a boring conversation like this. And second of all, what the heck makes ya think I'm gonna tell ya ta do somethin' completely reckless and stupid and then not get in on it?" He gave me a toothy grin. "I'm gettin' sick of you takin' all the vacations."

I blinked at him, a little taken aback. I felt myself smile at this before giving a chuckle. "So this is all a big elaborate scheme just so you can go on a trip?"

"Sure why not." Raph gave a shrug. "There're worse places ta go. 'Sides, I owe Bunny-Boy some red-indians for scarin' me too ya know."

"I get first dibs." I said, giving him a grin in return. It faded a little. "But... lemme think about what I'm gonna say to Master Splinter first ok?"

"Yeah." Raph nodded, suddenly serious again. "Just don' flake on me."

"I won't" I nodded. "I'll talk to him tonight."

Raph made a small groaning noise. "I get the feelin' he ain't gonna be happy."

"Maybe not." I nodded as we turned to leave the dojo. "But I hope at the very least he'll understand.

---------

I stood in front of the sliding door, staring at it silently as I tried to put the words in my head into the right order. I'd run the conversation through my head countless times since this morning. I'd thought about every possible response I could receive to what I was planning to do and what I could try and say in my defence. I'd thought it through over and over again until I felt fully prepared to tell Master Splinter about what I wanted to do. And yet standing here in front of his door, I could feel my courage clinging to me only by the smallest of fragments. I needed to talk to him before it broke completely.

I took a deep breath and knocked, although I knew there wasn't really a point. I'd been standing outside his door for the past 5 minutes already and I knew he was aware that I was there. Nevertheless I knocked, and waited for him to tell me to enter.

"Yes my son." I heard his voice reply.

I summoned up whatever little nerve I had left and opened the door. I made sure to close it behind me before turning to face my father.

He sat the centre of his room, the permanently lit stick of incense throwing threads and coils of smoke into the air. The room was warmer than the main room outside it, lit by burning candles which caused the lighting to look strange and sent confusing shadows in the corners. The smell, the warmth and the eerie appearance would make you believe that this was a place to be unnerved by. But that couldn't be further from the truth. Because this was Splinter's room. That fact alone made it feel like the safest and most welcoming room in our entire home. This room was a symbol of acceptance, understanding and council. The only thing that made this room unnerving was whatever your brought into it with you.

I walked over to master Splinter and sat myself down in front of him in a _senza _position, my legs locked under me and my hands resting on my knees.

"I had wondered if you would come to talk with me." Master Splinter said thoughtfully. He closed the book that had been lying open in his lap, putting it beside him as he focused his attention on me fully. "You are troubled Leonardo"

I gave a nod. "Yes Sensei." I sighed, keeping my gaze low. "I tried to push it out of my mind and to focus on the present, and I tried to have faith in your judgement, but I can't stop thinking about Usagi and why didn't show up at the Battle Nexus. I know you said there's probably a good reason but.. ...Sensei... I'm afraid of what that reason might be."

Master Splinter waited patiently as I spoke, not interrupting me or giving away what he thought. "You fear things you cannot control." He said once he was sure I was finished. "That is the greatest fear of all. Not only for you my son. The inability to dictate the course life takes strikes fear in all beings who think and feel. It is not something to apologise for."

I gave a nod but said nothing, waiting to hear what advice, if any, he could give me. Although in truth maybe I was just putting off having to tell him what I really wanted to do.

"All one can do Leonardo, is learn to accept that which we can not control. Adapt to it, learn from it, and reshape how one lives in accordance to it." He said.

"What about trying to change it?" I tried, lifting my gaze a little so I could look at him better.

"Hmm." He regarded me quietly, I could see him sizing me up, trying to see where my thoughts were taking me. "The question is are you able to?"

"I don't know Sensei." I admitted. "But.. ...if I don't try, isn't that the same thing as giving up?"

"Not necessarily." Splinter said. "There is giving up, and then there is finding acceptance. Giving up is not an admirable course of action. The greatest emotion it deserves is pity. However, if one resigns to one's fate in the knowledge that there is no way to change it, and one makes peace with it so that one can continue life in whatever form it may take from that point onwards, then that is the best action to take. Fighting a losing battle more often ends in a greater tragedy than not trying to fight at all."

"But what if there's something you know might work?" I asked desperately. "What if you're not sure if it'll be successful, but you know you could at least try? What if you know you're not just clutching at straws but you actually know something that might work if you only give it a chance?"

Splinter remained silent. He stared at me unblinkingly, flickering candlelight reflecting in his eyes. Even after I realised I was rambling and went quiet, he still said nothing. He just sat in front of me, watching me closely. I felt a little unnerved, but I stared back. I needed to hear whatever he wanted to say to me. I needed to hear what he thought.

"What is it you really want to say Leonardo?" He said after a while.

My tongue felt dry. I ran it against the roof of my mouth before swallowing, preparing myself.

"Sensei. I am worried about Usagi. Maybe I'm being irrational but I can't shake the feeling that's something's not right. I don't even know if that's just paranoia or if it's a gut instinct I should be trusting. But whatever it is, it's urging me to do something. I can't sit and wait any more Master Splinter. I know it's only been 3 days since the Battle Nexus, but it's been much longer than that. I've been waiting to hear from him for over 2 months now. I've been waiting and waiting and nothing has even given us a clue as to where he is or how he's doing. It's been too long Sensei. I can't wait any more. I need to do something. I need to do something if only because I'm convinced I _can_ do something. And just sitting around when he might need help feels like betrayal to me."

Master Splinter shifted in his seat, but slowly and calmly as he listened, keeping his eyes locked on mine. I stared imploringly at him.

"Master Splinter. I need to go find him. Please." I sat up straight. "I know you probably don't want me running off _again_ but, I gotta know if he's ok. I gotta.. ..I gotta go help."

"You have to find the brother who is missing." Splinter said, more to himself than to me.

I wasn't sure if I agreed with that statement, but I didn't want to contradict him and spoil my chances of getting him to understand.

"I know you my son. And I know how you think. You hold your friends who are dear to you close in your heart. To not know where one has gone is the same to you as if they'd left that place where you hold them safe within yourself."

I wasn't sure I understood, but I could at least tell he understood how I felt, even if his way of expressing it was more cryptic than my 'I'm worried about him'.

"Please Master Splinter." I tried again. "I need to find him. I don't think I could live with myself if I just sat here when I have something I could do to help."

Master Splinter gave a very long sigh at this, and for a moment I felt my heart drop. "We should accept the things we cannot change." He opened his eyes and straightened in his seat. "But we should have courage to change the things we can."

His demeanour changed as he sank slightly, giving me a warm and caring smile, switching from the Ninja-Master to the father. "And you can always return at any time."

I had to stop myself from smiling, afraid it might be too premature to celebrate. I gave a meaningful nod. "Yes Sensei."

He gave me a nod in return. "Find your friend Leonardo. I am sure it will be a weight off all our minds to know he is safe."

Before I could thank him, the door to his room was thrust open in one flash of a movement.

"I'm coming too!" Mikey yelled. It didn't sound like he was asking permission. "You're not leaving me behind Leo! No way!"

We both stared at him, surprised by the sudden entrance.

After a pause to recover himself Master Splinter made a noise. "I suppose now that I've said 'yes' to one of you I can't say 'no' to the others."

Mikey's fist pumped the air. "_Yes!_ Road trip!!"

**Xxxxx**

_Fffff. I'm so impatient for them to just get there already! XD_

_I hope every-one is still enjoying this, and will be patient with me._


	7. The Other Side

_I don't own TMNT or UY._

_Early update. Hope no-one minds._

**Xxxxx**

I could hardly contain my excitement as I sat in front of my computer, the dual monitors both showing different web-pages. One displaying a large a timeline with important historical dates listed on it and the other displaying a map drawn around the 17th century by Dutch explorers. I had a small notebook on the desk in front of me on which I was currently scribbling down some very basic notes as fast as I could. I tried to get down only the most important dates and territories drawn on the map but even narrowing down my information still left me with a lot I wanted to copy down and I knew the others weren't going to sit around and wait for me.

Yesterday evening I was enjoying the last few hours of our time off by catching up on some of the lengthier movies I'd been meaning to watch. I wasn't sure if I could get away with watching a 3 hour foreign film on our TV without getting harassed by one of my brothers who wanted to use the TV for their own purposes but I was sure as heck going to try. I deserved something to lift my spirits.

I won't lie, I was very disappointed when I realised I had, once again, been the first of my 4 brothers to be defeated in the Battle Nexus Tournament. I'm not exactly sure what I had been hoping for to be honest. I know I did very well, I'd improved by leaps and bounds compared to my first time in the tournament and had every reason to be proud of myself, especially since both Leo and Raph were defeated only a match or so after I was. However for some reason this didn't cheer me up very much. Maybe it was because I knew Leo wasn't fully focused on the fight and lost because of carelessness. And because of his too-easy victory Raph had been frustrated and angry so he screwed up and that's why he got beaten after that. It made me wonder how far they would've gotten if they were both taking this completely seriously.

This planted a very poisonous seed in my mind. It's more than obvious that Mikey has what it takes to win the championship. Whether it was by luck, one on one matches or a full tournament. He'd proven he was able to win the tournament regardless of the situation. Leo and Raph had, obviously, not won a championship yet. Raph lost to Mikey the first time, but with him having lost the second time due to his own emotions and not being able to prove whether or not he could get a proper victory over Mike, it made it unclear if he could go all the way to the championship, although secretly, I was pretty convinced if he put his mind to it he almost certainly could. As for Leo, the first time he'd had to step out of the tournament due to injury, and this time he lost because he was so preoccupied with concern over whether Usagi was alright or not. However I had absolutely no doubt in my mind that if Leo focused and unleashed that potential of his he was a shoo in for the championship.

But both of them had made dumb mistakes and were beaten. And what drove me nuts was that I had really been trying! I mean I had _really_ been trying! I honestly wanted to go as far as I could! I paid attention to Master Splinter's advice, tried to focus, tried to do my best and in the end not only was I the first brother out of the tournament, but I was 'beaten' by an exhausted and emotionally strained Leonardo, and an unfocused, frustrated Raphael. They were far from their best, and they _still_ got further than me. This aggravated me to no end, not to mention made me feel more than a little useless and pathetic.

I knew I was not a bad fighter. I knew I was better than _most_ fighters out there. But I was rather ashamed to realise it meant very little to me if I was still somehow branded as not being as good as my brothers. That's not even putting into consideration our way of life and that we needed to be skilled fighters to survive. Now I know I've had countless sparring matches with all 3 of them in which I'd managed to beat them one way or another. I knew I was perfectly capable of bettering them if I timed my moves right and was sure of my actions. But I couldn't help but feel the Tournament itself had some kind of weight to it as far as importance went. No-body would care if I told them I'd beaten my brothers countless times in sparring matches if I had to say 'but I ended worst than any of them in an actual tournament.'

Perhaps I was just unlucky enough to get matched with people who had advantages over me that I had no hope of beating. Perhaps, in my own way, I was concerned about, not only Leo and how he was coping with his anxiety over our friend, but the friend in question as well. There were many theories I could cook up as to why I came out at the bottom this time around. But somehow none of them seemed to give me any comfort or feeling of vindication.

So I put in a movie with a ridiculous number of minutes printed on the DVD and sat back for some self-indulgence, trying not to think about anything to do with matches or sparring or the damn trophy which was mocking me from the top of the TV as I tried desperately to act as if I didn't see it.

I was about an hour into the film when Mikey suddenly came stampeding into the room. I'd groaned and paused the film, turning to see what he wanted from me.

He ignored my moodiness and told me, in one swift burst, that I had to go to bed and get some rest because we were going on a trip tomorrow.

Now at first I was completely dismayed by this news. We'd just returned from the Battle Nexus dimension and I was in no mood whatsoever to go anywhere for a few days. I don't mind travelling, if anything I rather like it. It's fun to go to new places and learn new things, but I wanted to catch my breath and relax before running off to some other place so soon. I asked Mikey if it was essential that I go too, to which he nearly strangled me, telling me if I didn't come with I was going to regret it for the rest of my life.

Turns out he was probably right because Leo wandered into the room at that point and told me he was planning to go to 2nd Earth and look for Usagi and Mikey and Raph had pretty much already made it a sure thing that they were both going with him.

Of course when I heard this I immediately changed my mind. I'd always wanted to see Usagi's dimension for myself and was sick with jealousy that Leo had managed to do so the one time, even if it was unplanned and generally resulted in more drama than any of us would've liked. I abandoned my movie and was about to go to my computer and try to find any information we might find useful when Master Splinter called a family meeting.

We'd sat in the main room, waiting patiently to hear what he wanted to say.

"My sons." He had said. "Leonardo has expressed that he would like to go on a journey to try and find Miyamoto-san in his own dimension seeing as it has been a rather extended period of time since we last heard from him, and that his last parting was under less than ideal circumstances. He has asked my permission and I have given my blessing. Michelangelo has let me know he would like to go with him. Although I am not sure if it is truly because of the mission or if it is merely mischievousness."

"Hey!" Mikey'd piped up with a frown.

Master Splinter smiled slightly. "Either way, I am not against the idea of you accompanying Leonardo, but I am reluctant to permit it if you only wish to go to cause trouble for your brother and Miyamoto-san."

Mikey'd sulked at this. "But I really wanna go Sensei! Honest! I won't cause trouble I swear! I wanna go 'cause I wanna help!"

"Master Splinter." Raph had spoken up. "Leo and I talked about this before he went to you. I kinda already told him I'd go too if you said yes. If Mikey goes I can keep an eye on him and make sure he doesn't set the country on fire or somthin'"

"Gee thanks a lot." Mikey'd replied.

Master Splinter however had smiled warmly at this, giving a nod. "Then I believe it shall be all right if Michelangelo accompanies you. However, that puts you in a rather difficult position Donatello." He'd said, turning to me. "Do you want to travel with your brothers, or remain here by yourself? I am aware it is not a fair decision, but you still get to decide which you would prefer."

I'd laughed at this. "As if you even need to ask Sensei!"

So it was decided. The next day, as soon as it was properly morning, we were going to open the portal that led to Usagi's world and make the jump. The rest of the evening we'd talked about what we should and shouldn't do while we were there. Leo was invaluable in this discussion, having been there before and knowing what was acceptable and what wasn't.

I already had a pretty good understanding of Japanese customs. Master Splinter had taught us things such as reading and speaking Japanese since we were kids, a throwback to his own 'roots'. Or at least the roots we'd had to build for ourselves from the scraps and fragments of our early lives. But apart from his teachings and subtle influences, I'd also, even as a little kid, enjoyed pawing through his books on things like calligraphy, Buddhist texts he'd collected as well as things like books on weapons of the country and traditional art and whatever else Master Splinter had managed to collect in the endless hunting grounds we used to find items and belongings for our own home.

Once we'd acquired a computer, and with the introduction of the internet into our home soon after that, I'd really enjoyed filling in the gaps in my knowledge regarding the country's history by browsing different websites and essays as well as the miraculous invention of online shopping, which enabled me to buy books on topics I myself was interested in. My knowledge was by no means complete and I had more a generalist's idea of how the country's history worked, not focusing on any specific time period but having a basic over-view of the country's history as a whole.

However, there was absolutely no way anything on the internet or in a book or on a documentary could tell us how 4 giant talking turtles should behave in an alternative dimension. The first and most obvious thing was that people weren't going to run screaming at the mere sight of us. This in itself was already something to look forward to. Leo also mentioned that no-one had seemed to pay attention to the fact that we pretty much just tie a belt around our waists and put on masks. Apparently, being turtles, our shells seemed to be enough for people not to throw rocks at us for indecent exposure. This was good as I knew for a fact we didn't have any kind of clothing which we might get away with that side. Owning a historically accurate kimono was not exactly a high priority of mine. Other than that Leo couldn't give us anything else concrete. He did point out however, that while he was there he'd noticed that although Usagi, as a rabbit, had friends who were either rhinos, or cats or pandas and that he and Usagi had even faced against a _Han_ Lord who was an enormous snake, horses were still horses and treated as such and that it was probably a good idea not to talk about that too much and cause confusion.

Of course, hearing this sent up a million flags in my head and I instantly had about a hundred questions I wanted to ask the locals about this. I was going to have to do some serious exercises in self-restraint not to blurt out something awkward and be branded a crazy person.

Once we'd gotten what we could out of Leo's experience we were shooed to bed by Master Splinter. And before any-one asks yes, I did go straight to bed and slept.

However that didn't stop me from getting up at an indecent hour and going to my computer to do some last minute info gathering.

I knew we couldn't take anything with us apart from our weapons, but I was at least planning to take a note-book and something to write with to make some notes and diagrams on what I saw while I was there. I'd be damned if I let this opportunity slip me by. I was also using it to write down some information I felt we could use, such as the map of the territories from between the early to late 1600s.

I'd spoken to Usagi once or twice, just casually, about things happening in his life in his own world and I'd managed to determined a rough date for when he was from. Usagi had talked about 'The Time of Wars' being over and sometimes said things without realising they had some significance to them, like talking about 'The Shogun's new Capital' or that 'There was little use for Samurai these days'. With the little tit-bits he'd unknowingly say I was pretty confident I had at the very least a rough idea of what historical period we were looking at. This was important to know, because it not only gave me an idea of where the universe he was from lay as far as culture and scientific progress, but it also meant I could figure out what kind of historical events we probably _shouldn't_ mention while we were there since it might result is some serious Space/Time Continuum problems. Explaining this to the others was simple enough. When Mikey looked a little confused all I really had to do to convince him was to say 'Remember the Star Trek Episode where they accidentally made the Nazis win WWII?'

He seemed to get the idea after that.

However, I knew I could forget myself just as much as any-one else so I was taking down some dates to remind myself what not to mention or talk about, being sure to use a short-hand that I doubt any-one but me understood.

"I thought I'd find you here." a voice from the doorway said.

I turned and saw Leo standing there, his arms crossed as he gave me a reproachful smile.

I smiled back sheepishly, waving my small 5 x 8 notebook weakly. "Er... yeah. I just thought I should check some things before we go."

Leo sighed, coming closer to see. "What've you got?"

"Just basic things." I said, leafing through the small book. "Dates, places, important political figures. Things like that."

"'Important Political figures'?" Leo cocked a brow, leaning over my shoulder to look at my book as well. "That's a little unnecessary isn't it? Or are you planning to run for President or something?"

"Ok, first of all there's no such as 'running for President' there, and second of all what were you planning to do if some-one tries to say something regarding the government enh? You're aware that if you say the wrong thing about the wrong person you're going to get yourself killed right?" I said, swatting at him lightly with the book.

He backed off with a laugh. "Alright alright! I'm sure you know what you're doing. But I'm gonna have to interrupt you. Mikey's up and making breakfast and Raph's gonna be up any minute now. As soon as we've eaten we're going."

"Great!" I said excitedly, closing my browser. "You don't need to try and win me over Leo. Seriously. You have no idea how much I've been craving an experience like this!"

"No I didn't." Leo grinned at me as we left for the kitchen. "But you're level of geek-out is kinda giving me a hint."

I paged through my little note-book excitedly, making sure I didn't forget to write anything important. "And I'm going to break my own rule here and take a pencil with." I said as I did so. "Taking modern items there is probably the stupidest move in the world but I need something to take notes with."

"You do that Don." Leo said. "Just make sure not to do anything that'd get any of us in trouble ok? I don't want us collapsing Usagi's reality or anything like that."

I gave him a grin. "I'll try."

Leo smiled back. He was in an excellent mood this morning. I could hardly blame him.

We ate our breakfast. Mikey had made his signature scrambled eggs, but he'd also burnt some bacon and made some toast. He claimed that he didn't want to get there only to find the food that side sucked. I wanted to point out that we didn't have any money to buy food with and if we wanted to eat we were going to rough it but decided not to. The last thing we needed right now was for some-one to bring our spirits down.

We ate as much as we could without getting sick and, once we'd run through what little we knew both about where Usagi might be and what kind of questions we should be asking to try and find him again, we readied ourselves for the jump.

Jumping to Usagi's dimension was a different business than jumping to the Battle Nexus. It still involved drawing symbols and glyphs on a wall, but they were of a completely different arrangement than those for the Battle Nexus. The symbols didn't even look the same, and their order and sequence didn't seem to have anything in common with those of the Nexus at all. It was like trying to compare Egyptian Pictographs with Binary code. Also, unlike the Battle Nexus, it wasn't necessary for us to go to a specific location to activate the portal. We could do it within our own home, which in a sense made the trip itself a lot safer as it mean there was no danger of some-one discovering us, or finding the remains of our portal jump and travel to the dimension themselves.

Master Splinter was the one who drew the complicated graphs, picture-writing and swirls on our wall as we waited. I could feel my heart fluttering excitedly in my chest. I gripped my staff tightly. Mikey was standing next to me, shifting his weight from side to side as he watched Master Splinter with rapt attention. Raph stood beside him, but he seemed more content with giving Mikey a disgusted look at his over-eagerness than Master Splinter's complex ritual.

On my other side stood Leo. He was waiting patiently, his eyes fixed on the symbols on the wall. There was a deep frown on his face. I could see him clench and unclench his hands anxiously. I knew this particular Leonardo. This was the Leo which you didn't want to try and mess with until he'd done what he set out to do. Trying to stop him when he was this intent on going through with something was like trying to stop a freight-train by standing on the tracks and putting your arms out.

I wasn't criticizing him for it. Not in the very least. Leo'd been hit the hardest by the news that Usagi hadn't shown up for the Battle Nexus, but that in no way meant he was the only one who cared. He may have been the one letting it get the better of him, but I was worried too. I may have let things distract my attention and managed to think about other things, but that small lingering fear in the pit of my stomach never left me in all this time we'd been waiting. It'd never been strong enough to cripple my focus or cause me to lose sleep, but it had been there all the same, slowly adding an ounce of extra stress to my life as I waited with my brothers for any news. When we heard Usagi was not at the Battle Nexus, I was doing my best not to jump to the worst conclusion and even half managed to convince myself that there was a perfectly innocent reason for why he didn't show up. But that feeling of dread, that tiny added concern and feeling of 'not knowing' had done nothing to help me relax.

It never announced itself so that I could pin-point it as the reason for my stress, but it nevertheless had been laying dormant, eating away at my nerves. I was very grateful that Leo had decided to ask Master Splinter if we could go on this mission to at least try and find out what happened. I probably could have survived a while longer waiting for news from Usagi, but if given the choice, I would much rather try and do something than sit around and wait.

"Where are we going exactly?" I asked Leo, not taking my eyes away from Master Splinter.

"Usagi said he was helping the Lord of the 'Geishu' Province. I figured we might as well start there." He replied.

I gave a nod, logging away the name so I could look it up on my copied map once we got there.

Master Splinter stepped back from his intricate scrawls on the wall, putting his hands together and reciting an incantation much different to the one we used for the Nexus.

The symbols glowed in their almost familiar cyan blue. The thrown puddle of water swirled into the air very slightly before attaching itself to the wall and snaking its way up against it. It traced over the chalk lines before collecting itself in the centre, thinning and spreading until a circular doorway had formed itself. There was a flash and light flooded the room. A wind picked up, blowing softly inwards towards the portal as it spun in front of us.

"Good Luck my sons." Master Splinter said, giving us a an encouraging smile although his stare was serious.

"We won't stay longer than we need to Sensei." Leo nodded.

We then stepped forward, into the swirling blue door just as we'd done a few days before.

I walked forward, only vaguely aware of my brothers around me as we made the trip through the spiralling tunnel, heading for who knows where. The lights flashed and I was vaguely aware of the sensation of being pulled forward as we travelled. It was strange, and although not exactly pleasant, it was not a painful experience.

After a short period of time my foot touched on something with a little more substance to it than what I'd just been walking on and the light changed. The swirling lights faded out as the bright glow gave way to a softer, gloomier grey. The ground under my feet felt cold and soft.

I blinked, unsure if our trip was really over for a few moments before I looked around and got a better idea of where we were.

In front and behind me stretched a white landscape. Large masses of black, towering trees were thrown across it at random points as the open field we were in blended seamlessly into forests of bare branches. In the poor light I thought I could make out the ghosts of mountains somewhere in the distance, but every time I tried to get a better idea of their shape they seemed to change in the low-hanging cloud-bank and mist. The sky was a strange combination of dreary grey as well as an unsettling white which reflected the light that managed to get down to earth so that it bounced everywhere, making it hard to determine the exact time of day.

In the far distance, hugging a cluster of trees that marked the edge of a forest, I saw a light whose warm yellow contrasted with the cold monochrome of the rest of the scene.

I exhaled, and my breath swirled in patterns in front of my face.

"Is it just me? Or is it freezing?" Mikey said.

I turned to look at the rest of my brothers. They seemed to have been caught just as off guard by the view as I was, but Mikey's complaint snapped us out of it. He had his arms wrapped around himself as he danced from one foot to the other.

"This does kinda give us an added problem." Leo said, frowning at the snowed-over landscape.

"Great." Raph grumbled darkly, wrapping his own arms around himself. "I _thought_ this was all goin' too smoothly. Good ta see we ain't lost our touch."

"It's not that bad." I said, although I wasn't even able to convince myself. The cold air was starting to bite at my hands and feet. "Look. I can see a light."

"Let's hope it's a hotel!" Mikey said.

"Won't help." Raph grumbled. "We ain't got any money."

"At the very least they could give us a picture on where we are and which way we should be going." Leo said as he started to walk towards it. "Come on. It's as good a goal as any."

I nodded, agreeing as I followed behind him.

"Hey Brainiac. D'you have idea what time it is?" Raph said, turning to me as we started to walk towards the faint light.

I blinked at him before looking up at the sky. The clouds were too thick to even tell where the weak sunlight was coming from, let alone where the sun itself was.

"Sorry Raph. No idea." I said, giving him an apologetic smile.

"Why? You got an appointment or something?" Mikey said, managing a grin despite his chattering teeth.

"No." Raph said, not even bothering with a smart retort. "But if it's gettin' late we're gonna run into a very big problem very soon."

I bit my lip, wrapping my arms around myself a little tighter, trying to conserve whatever heat I could.

"C'mon." Leo urged, saying nothing in response to Raph's observation, although I saw him speed up his walk ever so slightly.

**Xxxxx**

_Han – Feudal domain_

_I kinda screwed up the time-flow here. Generally I try and keep dialogue for only 'Present' events and not when a Character's remembering something. But I felt this chapter is already very exposition heavy. I hope it still works and isn't too jarring._

_Premise is over! Maybe now this fic can actually start XD_


	8. Bad Food

_I don't own TMNT or UY_

**Xxxxx**

There is good food, and then there is cheap food, and I always seem to encounter the latter regardless of where I find myself.

I sighed at the decently sized yet unappetizing bowl in front of me. However I shook off my initial disgust, gathered my courage, and started to eat. At least it was warm. It also did not lighten my purse more than it deserved which was a bonus. The only thing worse than cheap food was cheap food disguising itself with a high price.

I kept my focus on my bowl as I ate, trying to ignore the taste and think instead of where I was planning to go from here. The snow had fallen earlier than usual this year which was annoying. I had hoped to find work and increase my finances a little before I had to start relying on the various inns I travelled past for shelter. People became far less eager to part with their money once the snow has fallen and food needed to be used sparingly. I hated being taken by surprise like this. Especially when I had already worked out a rough idea of where I wanted to be during these months and now had to try and rework that plan according to the weather.

Ugh. I hate the cold. I hate travelling in the cold.

This food is really bad.

I sighed, calling one of the innkeeper's daughters closer to ask for some tea, hoping it would make the meal go down easier. I had originally thought I might spend the night, but the thought of having breakfast here had persuaded me to try for the next inn. Even the cold did not seem that great a price to pay for a better meal.

The tea helped, and after a while I managed to full myself up. I paid what I owed and got up to leave, preparing myself for the weather as I did so. It was overcast, but it hadn't snowed today. At least not yet. I was hoping it would stay that way until I'd found shelter somewhere else.

I left the warmth of the inn and stepped back into the cold outdoors. I shuddered as I gave the sky a thoughtful glance, trying to see if the risk was worth it. Eventually I decided it did not look too bad and turned to continue down the road. I was glad it was one that was used more often, knowing a second inn would not be too far away.

As I walked I noticed the silhouettes of some other travellers coming from the valley's side towards the Inn's lantern.

'It seems I'm not the only one too stubborn to stay put.' I thought to myself as I pulled down my _sugegasa_ to protect my eyes from the glare before I turned and continued on my way.

**Xxxxx**

_Sugegasa – Japanese name for the conical hat worn throughout Eastern Asia._

_I was and am reluctant to write from Usagi's POV if only because I'm afraid of royally screwing up his character and somehow insulting my source material. However, it is necessary to see things from his perspective in later chapters._


	9. Good Fortune

_I don't own TMNT or UY_

_A Note about languages: It's pretty obvious that in UY, the language spoken by the characters is Japanese, and obviously the TMNT speak English. However, since I speak very little Japanese (if any at all) and trying to write a story in another language would not only be impossible but also stupid, I am taking a note from my source material once again. In the TMNT cartoon where Usagi makes an appearance as well as the UY books where the TMNT make an appearance the language issue is never brought up and every-one just speaks English. I'll be doing the same. Whether they're speaking english or translated Japanese when they interact with characters other than Usagi is up to you._

_In short: Don't ask, don't tell ;P_

**Xxxxx**

"What if we gave 'em an IOU?" Mikey said, taking double steps every few minutes to keep up with me.

"No." I said bluntly.

"What if we said we'd wash dishes or something?" He insisted.

"No." I repeated. I wasn't even really listening to what he was saying any more. I was just saying 'no' automatically.

"What if-?"

"Mikey, they won't put us up for the night if we can't pay." Donny said with a sigh.

Mikey made a frustrated noise at this. "What if we told them we were really really cold?"

"They'd say 'tough' an' kick us out." I said bluntly, trying to focus on keeping up with Leo.

"Aww, but we're so cute and pathetic looking!" Mikey protested. "How could they turn away this face? Huh?" He pointed at his own mug, giving me a wide grin.

"Ugh." I wrinkled my snout, putting my hand over his face and pushing him away. "They'd run us outta town."

"Face it Mikey." Donny said, grinning at us. "If we don't have money there's no way they'd even give us a second thought. They'd just turn us away. Might as well just accept it."

"So what? We're stuck walking around this snowglobe until we find the guy?" Mikey complained. "No fair! No-one told me about this! This is gonna suck!"

"You could always go home." I gave him a sneer. "It would make my life a lot easier."

Mikey threw me an insulted look. "I said I wanted to come and I meant it! I'm just not exactly happy with walking around the North Pole without a jacket or something!"

"We won't wander around too long." Leo spoke up, turning to look over his shoulder.

"Hmph. We better not." Mikey said, putting his hands under his armpits to keep them warm. "Or I'm gonna turn into a penguin."

I gave Mikey a sideways look before I turned to frown at Leo lightly. I sped up a little so I could walk beside him.

"You got a plan Fearless?" I asked flatly. I wasn't looking for a fight, I really wanted to know.

He turned to look at me as we continued to walk. "Not exactly, but Mikey's right. We can't walk around in this for very long without some kind of protection. We'll see what kind of lead we can get, if any, and if there's some kind of place where we can spend the night that doesn't need money."

"And if they got nothin' and there ain't no place ta go?" I asked, frowning at him.

He gave a small exhale. "Then we go home."

I said nothing for a few moments, trying to see what I could figure out from his expression since the guy was still doing his annoying 'clam up' thing he seemed to be making a habit of lately. I could tell he was being serious, but I didn't need to be a shrink to know he wasn't happy about it.

"Just like that?" I asked, trying to fight down the bite in my voice.

He nodded. "Just like that." He turned back to look at me. "Look I don't like it, but it'd be stupid to stick around here with no shelter, nothing to keep us warm and no leads. We'll freeze to death. You know that."

I made a noise in the back of my throat and nodded. "Fair enough." I shot him a sideways look. "But I hope you know you're comin' with us if we do. I ain't leavin' you here."

Leo said nothing for a few moments before he gave a nod. "Yeah."

I nodded back, satisfied. Even if Leo tried to wriggle his way out of it and tried to find a way to stay here and send the rest of us packing I could use his word as a promise and guilt him outta doing something crazy. I didn't think he'd be dumb enough to try and stay here by himself, but you never know. Sometimes Leo had a knack for doing really stupid things.

"Still holding up guys?" Leo said, turning to look over his shoulder at the other two. He was probably trying to get my attention away from him so we wouldn't have to do the whole 'butting heads' thing about whether he's really coming home with us or not.

"Barely." Donny shivered. "How far to go?"

"Not that far." Leo reassured him.

I slowed my step so I could fall behind him and keep a closer eye on the other guys. Leo was leading the way and cutting a path for us to follow, so I kinda took the responsibility of making sure none of the other two fell behind.

You might think we're kinda overreacting to the whole 'snow' thing. But I gotta tell ya, we're not. Snow is a problem. Even in New York snow is a problem. Whenever we moved around for long periods of time topside when it's snowed we usually prefer getting ourselves wrapped up in some or other ridiculous get-up. It was stupid, but it kept us warm. We also tried not to stay out too long when the temperature dropped. I dunno all the fancy science behind it and frankly I really don't care enough to have some-one explain it to me, but I knew that getting too cold was a problem worth keeping clear of. Me and my bros have some great little quirks that come with being a turtle in that if we get too cold and don't move around enough to keep ourselves warmed up we tended to get drowsy. Sounds harmless enough right? And generally yeah, it's not so bad. The problem is it's not the kinda drowsy where you just feel like taking a nap. It's the kind of drowsy where your brain starts shutting down and you can't make decisions as fast as you need to and you start feeling dizzy and unsteady on your feet. It's not just 'I gotta lie down 'cause I'm tired', it's 'if ya don't get yourself warmed up you're gonna black out while still on your feet'.

I don't think any of us had every gotten it that bad before though, mostly 'cause Master Splinter would put the fear of hellfire into us and if we got home later than he'd like when the weather was crappy. Hey, it seemed to work. We've never gotten ourselves in serious trouble yet.

The glowing light ahead of us grew until we could finally see it was a paper lantern hung outside a decently sized wooden building. It's door was slid shut but the light from inside flooded through the paper stretched over its framework. Normally the sound of voices meant something to stay clear of, but in this case it was kinda welcoming to hear people talking and laughing inside. I could smell the mixed scent of fish, people, carbon-dioxide and the very vague hint of alcohol. I was kinda glad Mikey'd forced such a big breakfast on us. I woulda hate to have gotten here both cold _and_ hungry with nothing to buy food with.

"Geez finally." Mikey grumbled.

"So, d'we just walk in an' crash the party?" I asked, turning to Leo.

"Yes please!" Mikey interrupted, eager to get inside where it was warm.

"We go in, but I'll talk to whoever's in charge and ask if he's seen or knows where we could look for some-one matching Usagi's description." Leo said, turning to face us. "The rest of you get in and try and warm yourselves up before we decide what to do next. But we're not eating or staying." He added, giving Mikey a look.

"Ok ok I get it." Mike said. He was getting moody. Not that I blamed him.

"Alright." Leo nodded, turning and sliding the door open before stepping inside. Mikey followed closely behind him.

I moved to follow but frowned when I realised we were one short. I turned to where Donny was standing, zoned out and staring at the roof of the building. I pulled a face to myself, not sure I liked that kind of behaviour.

"Hey Brainiac!" I called, deliberately a little louder than I needed to.

He snapped out of it with a start and spun to stare at me. "Huh?!"

I nodded in the direction of the door. "You wanna stay out here and freeze or you comin' in?"

"Coming in!" He said eagerly, hurrying and walking through the door quickly. "Sorry. I was just checking out the architecture."

"Whatever." I grumbled, following him and closing the door behind us.

It was surprisingly warm inside the place. You wouldn't think a building with a paper door could be very well insulated but this place obviously proved me wrong. I rubbed my arms, trying to get them to warm up as quickly as possible as I looked the scene over.

The place wasn't exactly bustling, but there was a fairly decent amount of people. Some of them turned to look when we walked in but once they saw us they did the most surprising damn thing I'd ever seen any-one do: They ignored us and went back to eating. I felt the corners of my mouth twitch at this. I think I'm gonna like this place.

The people in the building were, well, people. That seems kind of a weird thing to say but I don't know what else to tell you. They weren't _human_ no. They were obviously something else completely. Most had fur, sported ears more like that of a cat or a dog than anything else and I even spotted one or two who had markings on their faces. But other than that, they really were just people. Their faces, although not human, were not exactly unfamiliar or strange. They just seemed like... different versions of normal faces. To be honest I felt a little disappointed. Maybe I'm insulting the rabbit with this but I was kinda expecting the people from his dimension being a lot more exotic looking. I'd seen Disney cartoons more out there looking than these people.

But on the other hand, wasn't that kinda just the type of thing the 4 of us needed? We weren't born and bred the way we were now, but we considered ourselves as 'people' too. Not human, no way. But we were still people. It was a damn novelty to be somewhere public where you were seen that way by other people. I kinda liked it.

I felt something press against me lightly, pulling me outta my thoughts. I turned to see Mikey had taken a step closer to me. He was still hugging himself and shivering, but he was also looking around the room with a slightly uncertain expression. I had no idea if he was trying to keep warm against me or if he was just being a baby and trying to hide. I pulled a face to myself but didn't push him away.

Donny seemed to have a better grip on himself. That is, he was completely ignoring the people in the room and was obviously nerding out silently to himself about the building, looking around at the roof and walls wide-eyed as if it was the greatest achievement in construction he'd ever seen. I didn't get it. It was just a house.

Leo was talking to a short old-looking guy who was kinda hunched over, carrying a tray with some kind of mug on it. I could see Leo talking to him quickly but calmly.

When Leo stopped the man gave a large nod and turned to the door of the place, pointing with a hand and saying something back. Leo followed his finger with his eyes, then snapped his attention back to the man's face. I saw him say something short and quickly to which the man gave a nod again. Leo thanked him and I noticed him bob his head before trotting over to us quickly.

That damn head-bob bowing thing! I was gonna hafta remember that. I'd forgotten all these stupid details we were gonna have to do while we were here.

I unfolded my arms when Leo hurried back over, I could see a smile forcing its way onto his face. Good news obviously.

"Well?" I asked impatiently.

"You're not gonna believe this." Leo said, turning to grab all our attentions. "But he was right here about half an hour ago!"

"No kidding!" Donny blinked, honestly surprised by this.

Leo shook his head. "No kidding! But he's gone already. The Innkeeper said he left as soon as he'd gotten something to eat."

"Is he ok?" Mikey piped up anxiously.

"I'll tell you in a minute." Leo said, moving to leave the warmth of the inn. "But come on! We gotta hurry if we're gonna catch him!"

I followed after him, making sure Don and Mikey were close behind. I turned my attention back to Leo who was marching at a rather brisk pace all of a sudden.

"So? What did the guy say exactly?" I urged him impatiently. Mikey sped up his walk a little, not wanting to be left out of the conversation. Donny rounded to stand on my other side, also wanting to hear.

"The guy said Usagi wandered in, heading East, got himself something to eat and then left again." Leo said hurriedly.

"Did he say if he was hurt or anythin' like that?" I asked. I couldn't help but feel Leo was kind of missing the point of my anxiousness.

"The innkeeper didn't say." Leo said, but he didn't sound too depressed about it. "But he didn't mention anything and seeing as Usagi's up and moving around I'm guessing he can't be too badly hurt."

"If it is Usagi." Donny suddenly said.

We all stopped and turned to gape at him. He faltered under our stares slightly, looking back and forth between us. He licked his lips nervously.

"Well... you didn't ask for him by name right? You just gave a description. And since we're in his world... I doubt he's the only rabbit running around Leo." He gave Leo a deeply apologetic look.

Leo frowned lightly. "It was him."

Donny stammered slightly. "Y..yeah. I know how you feel Leo but..."

Leo shook his head, turning and walking again. "It was him Don. I know it."

We watched him walk on for a few moments. I made a small noise at his shell in irritation before turning to the other two. "C'mon."

We turned and followed after Leo once again. I dunno if it was my imagination or not but it seemed to be getting colder. Maybe it was just because we were in a warm room just a few moments ago, but I didn't like it. I heard Mikey give an audible shudder next to me, but he didn't complain. I pulled a face to myself, putting an arm around him and tugging him a little closer to me as we walked.

-------

We were quiet as we followed Leo in the direction Usagi had apparently gone. We seemed to be walking along some kind of road or path or something. The snow here had more or less melted, turning the path into a combination of slush and mud. Not really deep or overly messy or anything, the ground had been trodden too hard to really make any deep mud, but it was enough to be unpleasant. Still, I guess it was better than wading ankle deep in the snow itself.

We didn't say much to each other as we walked. Even Mikey was keeping his trap shut, not even bothering to complain any more. I guess we were all saving our energy to keep ourselves as warm as we could. I'd let Mikey go after a little while since walking was awkward and the last thing I wanted to do was for us both to fall over like a couple of idiots.

Every few moments I would glance over my shoulder to make sure Don was still keeping up with us. He seemed ok. He was looking around at practically everything we passed, from whatever shrub was poking out from the snow to a tree and sometimes I swore he just stopped to look at a rock in the middle of the path. At one point we passed a weird sculpture thing set up next to the path and I had to physically turn around and drag him away from it so we could keep walking.

He's been keeping up fine for the past few minutes though. I guess the novelty wore off as we found ourselves still walking around in this frozen mess. Nevertheless, I still checked him every few moments.

I couldn't help but notice Leo would look over his own shoulder every now and then too, checking on all of us. I was glad to see hadn't completely developed tunnel vision.

I really hope this joker we were following was Usagi and not some other white rabbit. If it's not I might strangle the guy just in spite.

We kept going, and for a long while nothing happened at all. The sky was still grey and it was still cold and we were still the only ones on the road. I lost all concept of time eventually. It might've been 20 minutes or it might have been an hour before I turned to Donny.

"Hey Don. Any idea how long we been walkin'?" I asked.

Leo turned his head slightly to listen, but he didn't stop.

"I know how long." Mikey grumbled. "Forever. That's how long."

Donny sighed. "I dunno. An hour? A little more? Why're you asking me?"

I gave a low growl under my breath. "Well excuse me. I just thought you'd know, bein' the guy whose usually on top of things like that."

"Well I'm sorry if I disappoint." He hissed back at me. "But I thought maybe bringing a digital watch to a 17th century Japanese culture might not be very healthy for the balance of time and space."

"Hey. Knock it off you two." Leo said, turning to look at us both, frowning irritably.

"Oh can it Leo." I snapped at him. I'd reaching the end of my patience with this whole thing.

Leo's frown narrowed slightly and he stopped. "Look, do you wanna go home?"

I said nothing, glaring back at him angrily. As they say, not answering is still an answer.

Leo clenched his teeth at this. "Oh sure. The second we actually get any kind of lead you just wanna call it quits and go home! Of course! Because nothing in the world is every easy enough for you is it Raph? It's always 'Turtle Luck' this and 'Typical' that!"

"Hey!" I barked, shooting a finger out at him. "Don't twist this into an excuse ta get personal Leo! I came here 'cause I wanted ta help _you_ remember?!"

"Yeah, well standing and complaining the whole time isn't exactly very helpful is it?!" He yelled back.

"All I asked was what time it was!" I snapped. Leo was opening a serious can of bullshit on me. "If you're frustrated don't take it out on me bro!"

"Guys c'mon." Donny's voice spoke up shakily. "We got a goal we're focusing on don't we? Isn't that enough? There's no reason to bite each others' heads off."

Leo glared at me angrily but he said nothing else, although I could clearly see on his face he damn well wanted to. I glared right back, daring him to open his mouth again.

"Hey what's that?" Mikey's voice spoke up.

We'd all come to a stop when Leo turned around to unload his crap on me. Mikey'd taken the 'lead' and was currently staring at something ahead of us. We all turned our attention to see what he was looking at.

Ahead of us there was the clear shadow of another person standing in the middle of the road. He appeared to be staring back at us with just as much interest. I couldn't make out a clear picture of who or what it was. They looked to be wearing a coat of some kind which disguised his silhouette. There also seemed to be a hat on his head, completely taking away any kind of distinguishing feature I might've recognized from so far away.

Apparently my argument with Leo had been heard.

"D'you think it's him?" I asked Leo, pushing aside his rather dick move for a second.

"I dunno." He answered, frowning lightly. "We're on a public road. Could be any-one. Also, I'm not sure every-one one these rural roads should be openly trusted. Usagi's told a lot of stories about bandits and gangs and-"

"YO!" Mikey suddenly called out, very loudly. He waved his arms over his head at the figure. "Hey dude!! You wanna come here where we can see you?!"

"Mikey have you gone _crazy?!_" Leo nearly yelled, taking a few steps towards him.

Mikey shrank back in one quick movement. "What? It's only one of 'em! If it's a bad guy we could take him. But what if it's not huh?"

"And what if it _is _some-one who'd happily cut our throats for us and his buddies are just hiding _huh?!_" Leo snapped.

"Too late either way." I said darkly, my hands instinctively lowering and gripping the hilt of my sai. "Here he comes."

Leo and Mikey tore their attention away from each other to stare back at the figure ahead of us. He had started walking towards us calmly, but meaningfully. Whoever it was was making a point in his stride to show he wasn't some-one who felt like being messed around. We straightened, not drawing our weapons just yet but keeping an eye on him suspiciously.

The figure walked purposefully for most of the way, but once he got a little closer he seemed to falter before coming to a stop. He stood, unmoving for a few moments as if sizing us up, then continued to walk towards us again, only now his step was much faster and deliberate.

I tightened my grip on my sai slightly, still not convinced he wasn't a threat.

The approaching figure's fast walk broke into a trot as he came closer. "Are you out of your _minds?!_"

You could almost see a physical wave go through us as we relaxed. I let my sai go. The figure ran over to us, skidding to a halt and almost slipping on the muddy road. Leo's hands shot out and half-caught him. The figure pushed his coned hat up a little and out of his face. He looked like he wasn't sure whether to smile or glare up at Leo as he steadied himself on his feet again.

"_Hisashiburi_ Usagi-san!" Leo said, completely unable to hide his relief. "My God it's good to see you, you have no idea!"

"Yes yes _Hisashiburi._" Usagi said, almost waving the greeting aside. "But what are you _doing_ here?!"

Leo blinked as if his brain had just shut rebooted itself. "What d'you mean? We came looking for you!"

"What?!" Usagi frowned, completely confused. "Oh by the Gods look at you." he took a step back, looking Leo up and down. "You will freeze and you will die Leonardo!"

"Nice ta see you too Bunny-Boy." I grumbled, but as hard as I tried I couldn't fight back the wide smile on my face.

Usagi turned, as if only now realising the rest of us were here too. He gave his head a slight shake. "Forgive my rudeness, but honestly! What were you planning to do if it snowed and you have not found shelter? You are hardly dressed for any kind of travelling! Let alone winter travel! You must have lost your senses!"

"Hey, you don't need to tell us!" Mikey shivered. "But we wanted to try and catch up to you before we called it quits and go home!"

"The truth of it is;" Donny interrupted. "We didn't realise it was winter when we travelled here, and once we got here we wanted to at least hear if we could find any rumours on where you were. Once we heard you were so close we figured we'd better try and catch you if we could before going home and starting from scratch again."

"Looking for me?" Usagi said, blinking. "Why?"

"It's a long story." Leo said, smiling away. I could almost see relief washing off of him. If he was any happier to see our friend he probably would've tackled him or something. "First, I think we should get out of the cold before we really _do_ freeze."

"Yes." Usagi nodded. "I was travelling to the next inn when I heard your voices and was not sure if I was simply imagining things or not. It is not too far now. We should make it in short time if we keep moving."

He turned and started walking again, turning and expecting us to follow.

"Er... One problem with that." Donny said.

Usagi stopped with a frown.

"The truth is we don't have any money." Leo confessed. "We didn't think we'd need any."

"Well I am not leaving you out here to die." Usagi said with a huff. I found it a little disturbing that he didn't seem to be joking. "Come. I have enough for some food and hot tea. You can fill me in on what is going on while we warm up."

"I dunno..." Leo said, looking reluctant. "I mean how much money do you have exa-"

"Woohoo!" Mikey threw his arms in the air, trotting after Usagi eagerly. "Lead the way dude! Seriously, I don't think I'm _ever_ gonna stop my teeth from chattering ever again!"

"I gotta admit. Something hot to drink sounds great right about now." Donny added, following Mikey.

I turned and gave Leo a grin before falling in step behind them. "Face it bro. No-one's listenin'."

Leo gave a drawn out groan to this. "Fine fine. But we already ate not too long ago. I think some tea will be enough."

"If you are sure. Although I must say Leonardo," Usagi turned and gave him a bright smile. "As happy as I am to see you again, you have chosen a terrible time of year to visit."

**Xxxxx**

_._


	10. Usagi's Excuse

_I don't own TMNT or UY._

**Xxxxx**

"You are all mad." Usagi was still saying, more to himself than to us. He gave his head a light shake, drinking from his cup. He seemed unsure whether to be scowling at us angrily or smiling.

I turned my attention back to the group at the table. I'd been busy giving the other customers in the inn a once over, trying to see if I could figure out their class and social status based on their appearance, dress and mannerisms. For some it was easy to figure out, others not so much. I'd been meaning to pull out my notebook and get down some observations, but when we were out in the cold there was no way I would've been able to hold a pencil with my fingers being frozen, and at the moment we were focusing on catching up with Usagi and figuring out what's been going on with him.

The walk to the second inn turned out to be further than I'd thought, so much so that by the time we actually got to it I was wondering if it wasn't evening already. Although honestly, how would you be able to tell with this weather?

The walk to the inn had been cold and wet, but somehow it made getting there and sitting down in the warmth and get served something hot to drink all the more worth it. Leo had still seemed unsure about Usagi paying for us but the samurai refused to hear anything against it, pointing out that Leo must think he's pretty terrible at his job if he'd get paid so poorly that he couldn't afford 5 cups of tea. This seemed to shut Leo up, even though I was sure Usagi didn't think that was the case at all. To be fair, we decided not to get anything to eat. It seemed silly and we could hold out a little longer. The main focus was on getting warmed up and out of the freezing weather.

Now that we were safe, Usagi was making it clear just how bothered he was by our carelessness, reprimanding us for walking around in the snow without any kind of protection or money. However, for all his grumbling and criticism, he really did seem pleased to see us.

Seeing Usagi alive and well had given Leo a shot of endorphins as he was in the best mood I've seen him in months. Usagi's scolding slid off him like water on a duck's back and he even joked slightly about our stupidness, something Leonardo is not usually inclined to do. It lifted the rest of our spirits and helped push our mood back up so that neither him nor Raph seemed to even remember their argument out in the snow.

"Hey blame this guy!" Mikey said to Usagi, waving a hand at Leo. "He's the one who's gone nuts and decided walking around a frozen tundra was a good idea!"

Leo gave a chuckle. "Don't pretend as if I dragged you here Mikey. You were the one who had to convince Master Splinter that it'd be ok for you to come too. It's not my fault if you were too stubborn to go home."

"Well we weren't gonna leave ya ta go wanderin' around alone out there! Knowin' you you'd just get into trouble." Raph said, giving Leo a smirk.

Leo rolled his eyes. "Oh sure. Go ahead. Gang up on me, it's fine."

I chuckled. "I'll stick up for you Leo. It was our choice to come after all."

He gave me a grateful smile. "Thanks Don."

"Then I merely reiterate what I said." Usagi said. "You are _all_ mad."

"Yeah, but you knew that already!" Mikey said, giving Usagi a cheerful grin.

"Indeed." Usagi said, but he smiled back. His face turned serious for a moment though. "Although I was not joking. It seems relatively calm at the moment but when the snow comes on this side of the country it comes down very hard and very fast. You should count yourselves fortunate that it is mild today and that fate decided to lead you to me so directly, otherwise your little adventure might have been cut tragically short."

Raph waved a hand at him. "Don't get all parental on us Usagi, we got Leo for that. 'Sides, we weren't gonna do somethin' stupid and run around till we keeled over. We were gonna go home if it got too bad out there. We just thought we'd track ya down first since we were told ya just left the previous joint."

"Yes. And this brings me to a question I must ask." Usagi said, putting his tea down. "Why exactly have you come such a long way to find me?" He frowned at us. "Is there something the matter? Are you in trouble?"

"Who us? No we're fine!" I said, rather surprised that he would think of our problems first.

"Yeah." Mikey nodded. "And you're stealing our lines dude. We're suppose to ask _you _those things."

Usagi made a confused noise at this, tilting his head at us slightly. "I do not understand."

"Alright alright. Let's start at the beginning." Leo said, waving his hand as if to push away all the needless questions in the conversation. "I dunno how our dimension's time matches up with your's but I know it's pretty dang close. For us it's been just a little over 2 months since we last saw you after you dropped in on us to get away from that battle gone wrong."

Usagi blinked as he gave a nod. "2 months sounds about right yes."

Leo seemed taken aback but only for the smallest of moments before he carried on, a little more business-like. "Well, we've been waiting to hear what happened to you after that and how that whole mess turned out for you, but we haven't heard a word." Leo paused, staring Usagi in the eyes meaningfully, as if to make a point. Usagi however merely blinked back, waiting for him to continue. I could see a light frown appear on Leo's face as he went on. "Anyway. We were worried but we figured it would be ok since we were expecting to see you at the Battle Nexus Tournament."

"Oh yes!" Usagi perked, smiling warmly at this. "How did that go?"

"Dude I won!" Mikey instantly chimed in, completely interrupting whatever Leo had been trying to say. "First place all the way! And no lucky shots or disqualifications or anything like that! Just pure skill man! You shoulda seen me! I was _made_ for that contest!_"_

Usagi laughed at this, raising his cup of tea very slightly. "_Omedetou_! Congratulations Mikey-kun. It is no small victory, I am aware of that."

Mikey beamed at him.

"Usagi, I'm beggin' ya. Don't encourage him." Raph said, putting a hand over his face. "We've only _just_ stopped havin' ta listen to the whole 'Battle Nexus Champion' bullcrap an' I really don't feel like that bein' made a habit again."

"Awh." Usagi said with a mock hurt expression. "Surely there is nothing wrong with wishing a victor congratulations if they deserve it?"

"Yeah Raph!" Mikey said, turning the full force of his smile on him. "There's no reason to be a big fat sore loser!"

"I ain't no sore loser!" Raph said, banging his fist on the table lightly. "I'm just sick of hearin' it Mikey! And you know it!"

"Word of advice Usagi;" I smiled at him. "Just leave that topic alone unless you want to hear this kind of argument brought up every single time."

Usagi grinned. "I must find my entertainment somewhere Donatello-san."

"_The point is!_" Leo said rather loudly, trying to regain control of the conversation. The rest of us quietened down and turned back to him. "The point is we didn't see you there. We got worried because we hadn't heard from you in so long. So after we finished the tournament we decided to come looking for you here." Leo's frown deepened ever so slightly. "We were worried you might've gotten into trouble or something and needed help."

"Ah." Usagi said, smiling more warmly at him. "I understand your concerns. But really, you should not have worried so much Leonardo."

"I keep tellin' 'im that but he never listens." Raph said, sneering at Leo almost victoriously. Leo merely glared at him.

"Where were you?" Mikey asked, more focused on Usagi than either Leo or Raph. "How did that whole battle thingy go? Did you win? Did you get all the bad guys?"

Usagi laughed again. "One question at a time! And another drink I think." He turned to try and catch the attention of one of the girls weaving between the tables. There were only 2 of them, not including the innkeeper, but they moved fast. "Are you sure tea is all you want?"

"Yes." Leo said purposefully before the rest of us could say anything else.

"Alright. Suit yourself." Usagi said.

The younger of the two girls came closer and Usagi requested a refill for all of us. Once our cups were full again he turned back to us, folding his hands around it and blowing on it slightly.

"Now, what is it you would like to know?" He said, turning his attention back to us.

"Let's start with what happened when you got back here." I said, my own hands wrapped around my cup. My hands had long ago warmed out of their numbness, but the cold was still lingering in them and I was struggling to get them warmer.

Usagi gave a nod, taking a sip from his tea before putting it down. "Once I returned, I travelled back to the village where we had set up camp. Once there I reunited with Tomoe and I was brought back up to speed on our condition. After that we reworked our plans to drive out the bandits from the Geishu borders."

"Leo said you were worried Tomoe'd be mad at you." Mikey said, staring at him. "Was he?"

"She." Usagi corrected him, peering at him over the rim of his cup. "And not really. Although she was very relieved to see I was unharmed. When I explained my situation and the actions I took to survive she understood and forgave me for frightening her."

"That's good." I smiled. Leo'd told us that Usagi'd really been beating himself up over scaring his friend. I was glad to hear she didn't give him a hard time simply for trying to stay alive. I didn't say it during Leo's retelling and I wasn't gonna say it now, but as far as I figured any friend who'd be angry at you for doing what you had to to stay alive wasn't a friend worth keeping. Maybe the morals and rules were a little different here, and I'm fully aware that that was a debatable opinion to have, but I would've been very angry if I'd heard Tomoe had given Usagi a hard time for not dying.

Usagi nodded, giving me a smile. "I was very relieved. I am sorry that I frightened her, but it turned out al right in the end."

"So then what?" Leo said. I felt this was a little rude but I guess I could understand his impatience.

"Well," Usagi said, putting his tea down again. "After that we decided we had to expand our war-party and attack a second time that same night. Now that the element of surprise had been lost it was important to cut them down while we could. We did not think they would expect us to attack again so soon after a defeat, so we used that to our advantage. There is little to tell after that. We recruited any-one willing to pick up arms against this threat for some payment, gathered what remained of Tomoe's party and attacked again. We were able to find some other _ronin_ in the village who were more than happy to put their swords to use for some payment. We even had some villagers who were eager to join, although their motives seemed more driven by revenge than income. We lost some of our men, but Tomoe's prediction had been true and they had not anticipated a second attack so quickly. Some of their men had left their camp to warn their lord of their exposure. Those who remained were either slain or captured. As for the messengers, alerts were put out along the borders and they were soon apprehended also. We have been unable to determine which Lord it is who wished to infiltrate the Geishu province, but this was a heavy blow to their plans and Lord Noriyuki seems confident that there will not be another attempted invasion until this mysterious enemy's confidence has healed."

"And that's it?" Raph asked. "All nice and neat just like that?"

Usagi blinked at him but gave a smile and a nod. "I am sorry it is not a more exciting tale, but that is the story."

"I hope they gave you a nice reward for all of that!" Mikey grinned at him.

"_Mikey._" I hissed under my breath, trying to aim a kick at him from under the table.

"What?" He said back. "I know I woulda liked something for all that hard work!"

"Yeah, but not every-body thinks like you!" I grumbled at him irritably.

Usagi didn't seem to take offence though, smiling at Mike. "I helped Tomoe with no plans of profiteering from it, and that is how it remained."

"Sounds like a bit of a rip-off to me." Mikey sulked.

This time my foot made contact and Mike gave a yelp, jumping in his seat slightly and catching the attention of one or two other customers in the inn. However when they saw it was just us goofing around they soon lost interest again.

"So what about afterwards?" Leo asked with a frown. His arms were crossed over the top of the table and he was leaning forward on his elbows.

"Hmm." Usagi thought for a moment. "Afterwards I decided to travel back East since I knew winter was coming and the Eastern coast's weather tends to be milder and the snow not as thick. I was able to visit some friends I had not seen in a few months and other than that, my travel so far has been uneventful. At least nothing that would make for a good story." He gave a small shrug at Leo. "I am sorry that I do not have anything more exciting to tell you, but that is all. The snow has come early this year which has delayed me slightly. I am wondering if perhaps it would be foolish to travel East for milder weather if it will simply be the start of spring once I got there. So lately I have been trying to decide what I plan to do and how flexible my budget is."

"Sounds excitin'" Raph said with a flat tone. He stretched himself slightly. "Then again I guess boring is good too. It's better than bandits shootin' at ya right?"

Usagi smiled and gave a nod. "To be sure. A dull life is a life of happiness."

"Yeah, we should be so lucky." I sighed, propping my face in a hand.

"Ok." Leo said. His tone of voice seemed to suggest he wasn't satisfied with letting this go yet. "So this past month or so you've just been making your way back East?" Leo straightened in his seat, pushing off his elbows. "Why didn't you come to us? Why didn't you let us know you were ok?"

"I did not think you would be so concerned." Usagi said, turning to Leo. "If I had known you were so anxious for news I would have gotten word to you sooner. My main focus at the time had been on increasing my funds. As I said, I was aware that winter was coming and it is harder to fend for oneself when it becomes cold. Not to mention I will have to rely primarily on the inns for shelter. At least more than I did in the previous months. I have been looking for work, preparing myself for the cold."

"Smart plan." Raph said, draining his cup. "Although you coulda just come stayed with us."

Usagi laughed at this. "Not at all. 'It is better you rely on your own resources when you are able to.' That is what my Sensei taught me. I have survived many a winter on my own Raphael-san. I fail to see how this one would be any different."

"Fair enough." I said. Master Splinter and the rest of us always disliked hand-outs from April and Casey so I understood his opinion. If you want to call it pride then sure, go ahead. But Master Splinter had taught us that we should rely on each other, but we should never expect other people to carry us. The lesson had been 'Trust each other, because there will never be any-one else to trust' for many many years. It's only recently where the lesson had changed to 'Trust each other, and ask for help where you can. But only when you need it.' I liked this lesson much more. The first one had been far too lonely for my liking.

"So what're you gonna do now?" Mikey asked again. "You're not going East any more?"

Usagi gave a slight shrug. "I am not sure. I suppose I will still head in that direction, only at a more leisurely pace as I now no longer need to try and outrun the weather."

"Doesn't sound like that solid of a plan to me." I commented, but I smiled.

He smiled back warmly. "The best plans are those which are flexible."

"Yeah. Or non-existent." Mikey grinned.

Raph gave him a meaningful jab with his elbow.

"But what of you?" Usagi said, looking back and forth between us. "You have set out to find me and here I am. Now what do you intend to do?"

We looked at each other. The truth was we had no idea. We were kinda under the impression that we were embarking on this giant quest to find him which might take days if not a week or two. We'd never dreamed we'd practically trip over him the second we took a step into his dimension. None of us seemed to know how to answer the question so we all turned to Leo automatically.

Leo had his arms crossed over his plastron. He was frowning lightly to himself, as if he was thinking something over. I felt a soft frown form on my own face. He still seemed bothered by something. Whatever it was though he pushed it aside.

"To tell you the truth I have no idea." He said to Usagi. "I don't think any of us thought we'd find you this easily." He turned to the rest of us. "What about it guys? What're you thinking?"

I instantly spoke up, afraid of some-one else getting the first word. "I want to take a look around before we go home. I've always wanted to see what Usagi's world is like and now that we've gotten this far it seems a waste just to go home again and leave it for another time. There's an endless list of things I want to check out and do and see and kinds of people I want to meet and landscapes I want to check out. Not to mention some of the more historical things I want to see which I'm _never_ gonna find anywhere else! At least not as fresh and current as they are here."

"Geez Donny, calm down." Mikey leaned away from me slightly. "You're givin' me whiplash from the force of your geek-out!"

I pulled a face at him. "Hey! Leo asked and I'll be damned if I let this slip by me! I've been wanting to check this place out for ages and here's my chance!"

"Ok ok." Leo raised a hand as if to calm me down. "Alright. I get it Don. But what about you guys?" He turned to Raph and Mikey.

"Well," Mike said, crossing his arms behind his head as he turned his eyes to the ceiling thoughtfully. "I think it'd be fun to stick around for a little while. I mean I don't have some super big agenda like some people." He gave me a sideways glance. "But it could be cool. But I'm good with whatever you guys wanna do."

"I dunno." Raph spoke up and I instantly felt my heart sink. "I mean, I get that hanging around here could be fun, but it ain't exactly the time for it." He waved a hand at the door behind Usagi and Leo. "It's like Nome Alaska out there and we ain't got nothin' ta keep ourselves warm with. Not ta mention we ain't got money to feed ourselves or pay for a place ta sleep or anythin'. And we can't ask you ta pay for us." he pointed at Usagi. "Ya just said you were still tryin' ta scrape together some dough before the weather hit. As far as I can tell that's double talk for 'My budget's pretty tight'."

He leaned back in his seat again. "Sorry Don, but it seems like a dumb idea ta hang around when the weather's like this. If it was any other time a' year sure. But it just seems stupid to run around and get ourselves killed."

I bit down on my bottom lip, glaring at him. But no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't think of a single counter-argument. Raph was completely right. The bare facts were, it was freezing and snowing, we had no winter clothes, or clothes at all, we had no money and there was no way we'd ever dream of having Usagi support us when he had to look after himself.

I gave a short but hefty sigh, crossing my arms ontop of the table and putting my chin ontop of them irritably. "I guess you're right."

Mikey gave me a reassuring smile and I felt him pat my shell. "Cheer up Don. We can come back when it's warmer right?" He lifted his gaze to Usagi and Leo.

Usagi smiled brightly and gave a nod.

Leo nodded too, but more solemnly. "I agree. Staying here just doesn't make sense right now." He turned to me, his expression lightening slightly. "We'll come back when it's Spring or summer ok Don? I promise."

"Sure." I muttered disappointedly, sitting up again.

"You should come in Spring." Usagi said, turning and smiling at Leo. "I guarantee you will not regret it."

Leo smiled back at him, but only for a second or so. I frowned to myself lightly at this. Leo still seemed annoyed with something but for the life of me I couldn't figure out what. His good mood at finding Usagi had completely disappeared and he'd dropped back into the moody attitude he'd had for the past 2 months. I couldn't figure it out. I wanted to ask him about it but I wasn't going to do so while we were still a large group. I logged it away, planning to bring it up once I could talk to him in private.

"We're not going right away though right?" Mikey said hopefully. "We can hang out for a little while longer right?"

"Well that depends on what time we wanna go." I said, turning to look at Leo thoughtfully.

"It seems you will not be going anywhere until morning." Usagi commented, having twisted around in his seat to look behind him.

Leo turned to him with an almost irritable frown. "What d'you mean?"

Usagi nodded in the direction of the door. "_Yuki-Onna_ has passed by this way."

We frowned, turning to see what he was talking about. The door to the inn was open by a small crack as a traveller from outside came in, removing his coned hat and shaking the snow from it. Behind him the outside looked dimmer than it had when we first got here and even from across the room we could see the flurry of snowflakes pouring down, some of them having followed the traveller inside as he slid the door closed, the innkeeper calling out a welcome to him.

"Great." Raph grumbled darkly. "Ain't that how it goes?"

Usagi turned back to him, giving a friendly smile. "I see it as good fortune. Come, I will pay for a room and we will spend the night. You can tell me of the Nexus Tournament in detail and whatever other news you might have. I will tell you of our victory in greater detail if you would like."

"Are you sure?" I asked. I felt kinda bad for spending Usagi's cash.

He gave a nod. "It is the least I could do to make up for worrying you as much as I have. And it would be a nice change to have roommates for once, if only for the night."

"I dunno." Leo said.

"Don't matter." Raph grinned at him. "We ain't got a choice."

"Sleep-Over!" Mikey said excitedly.

"Ya call it that again and I'm throwin' ya out the window." Raph said, instantly going from smug to disgust.

I shook my head at them. "I hope you're prepared for this Usagi. This is the kinda junk you're gonna have to put up with all night."

"I am sure I will survive." He chuckled.

Leo said nothing, brooding to himself quietly.

**Xxxxx**

_Yuki-Onna – Lit. "Snow-Woman". A kami or yokai generally considered to be the spirit of the snow itself._

_I've been having difficulty writing lately, but I'm hoping if I keep going and just think it over carefully and relax it'll be ok. I hope no-one will be able to tell XD_


	11. A Closed Door

_I don't own TMNT or UY_

**Xxxxx**

My hands flew to my throat as I twisted where I stood and then fell over, judging my fall just right so I hit one of the futons. Usagi laughed and I grinned to myself. Hah! I should get this kind of audience more often!

"But that's not the best part!" I said, quickly scrambling back onto my feet again. "So the guy's all hunched over and grabbing at his ankle right? So I twist around and jump up from behind! And when I was right above him I brought my nun-chuck down to clobber the guy!" I demonstrated, swinging my arm to show him. "Only I didn't hit him 'cause I guess the Gyoji realised the guy was done so he got zapped away! So then I was all 'Where'd he go?' and I was looking around all confused. And then I heard the crowd cheering and I was all 'Holy crap I won!'" I grinned widely, throwing my arms in the air and waving at the imaginary crowd. "Thank you. Thank you. No really! No big deal!"

"Of course he was a lot more freaked out looking than he is now." Donny piped up.

"Ah, that was all an act!" I lied, waving a hand at Don to try and get him to shut up before he killed my buzz completely. "I was doing it to psyche the guy out."

"Suuuuure ya were." Raph grinned.

"Even so," Usagi said. "I do not think that is really important. The main point is you won. Even if you were frightened." He broke into a wide smile. "Which I am sure you were, regardless of what you say Mikey-kun."

I stuck my tongue out at him, plopping down on the futon again. "Yeah? Well let's see how cool you are fighting a giant cow monster all by yourself!"

Usagi laughed again. "I am sure I would be terrified." I couldn't tell if he was just sparing my ego or if he was telling the truth.

"Scared or not, you put up a good show Mike." Leo said, giving me a smile.

I couldn't help but grin back. I don't think Leo'd praised me at all for my win yet. I mean, I liked getting praise from every-one, but getting it from your biggest brother just makes you feel just a little more awesome you know?

"I wish I could have seen it in person." Usagi smiled. "The next Tournament I will be sure to be there." His eyes flashed. "Although, I intend to take that title when I do."

I gave him a laugh, although it was mostly to hide the fact that I was a little nervous at him look at me like that. "Good luck dude! We'll see if you can when you get there!"

"I wouldn't smack talk Long-Ears if I were you Mikey." Raph said, grinning at me. "He strikes me as the kinda guy who'd remember stuff like that."

"Oh yeah?" I said, pulling a face at Raph, although I noticed in the corner of my eye Usagi's smile widen slightly. "Well he's gonna have to beat a cow monster first before I start to worry!"

"No, I'm with Raph on this one." Donny said. "Don't tempt fate unless you're sure you can back it up Mike."

"You all make it sound as if I am some vengeful demon." Usagi chuckled.

"Hey, I've seen you when you're mad." Donny said cocking a brow at him.

"Oh I am sure I am not that intimidating." Usagi said, although he was lying through his teeth and he knew it.

After we'd finished our tea downstairs, Usagi had gone about getting us a room for the night. Since the inn wasn't exactly the biggest giant hotel in the world and we wanted to do some catching up before we went to bed we just got one that we could share. Besides, it was easier on Usagi's wallet that way. Do they use wallets here? I dunno. Well whatever, we were currently sitting around the room and sharing my awesome victory with the guy. Because seriously, I feel sorry for the guy who misses out on hearing of my epic battle.

The room itself was pretty good. Nicer in some ways than the one we had at the Battle Nexus, but not really that different. It was also pretty empty apart from one sword-stand and then the futons which one of the innkeeper's daughters had set up for us.

I tell ya, I'm still trying to wrap my head around this whole animal-people thing. I mean I didn't mind. We have a ton of strange friends back home. The creepy part from these people came from them not caring how we look. I mean, sure it was awesome to not have to hide and be able to just be ourselves in public, but at the same time I still felt a little weirded out by it. Maybe it was just because of all those lessons Master Splinter had drilled into my head about staying out of sight, not talking to people we didn't know, never being seen, being on my guard at all times and all those other ninja tricks. But I dunno. I just felt a little unnerved about walking around and not having to have my guard up all the time. I was trying to relax, but I kept looking over my shoulder for trouble just on instinct.

I always thought I was the guy who tended to forget the whole cautious thing the most out of all my bros, and yet here it seemed I was the only one still feeling uneasy about this. Maybe my head was just wired wrong so I was too relaxed back home and too tense while we were here.

But it didn't matter right now. At the moment it was just us 5 and I didn't need to worry about strange faces looking at us. I mean, I like people. I like talking to people and trying to make friends if I can! That's what I live for! But I just felt kinda nervous with so many people openly seeing us and not having any reaction to us at all. In a way it made me feel invisible, and not in the ninja-y good way. In the, 'We see you. We just don't care.' way. I don't think I've ever had that before. Even when my brothers ignored me they still acted annoyed with me. Heck, even normal people back home always had _some_ kind of reaction at seeing me. Sure it was a bad one, but at least it was _something_. I didn't really know what to make of this whole 'indifference' thing.

But it was fine now. We were in a warm room together with the wind outside and I could take the spotlight and tell one of our buddies about something awesome I did all by myself. Even Raph seemed to let me have my moment and wasn't yelling at me for doing the whole 'Battle Nexus Champion' thing. Leo was kinda quiet, but I guess he just didn't want to interrupt me or something.

"Should we be keeping it down?" Leo said, turning to look at one of the paper walls. "Won't people complain?"

"It is not that late." Usagi said. "Besides, we are probably being drowned out by the noise from downstairs."

He wasn't lying. I noticed that once it got later the crowd at the inn got louder. Japanese Happy Hour I guess. I didn't even know stuff like that existed.

"Perhaps we should talk about something else though." Usagi added. "If you are concerned about the noise Leonardo."

Leo gave a shrug at this. "Do what you want."

Usagi blinked at this, looking slightly confused.

"Hey!" I said as a thought struck me. "You said you caught up with some of your other friends before you came here right? Any-one we know?"

Usagi turned his attention away from Leo and back to me, smiling again. "I do not think so no."

"That ain't surprising." Raph said, giving me a grumpy look. "We only know Gen, Mikey. I'm sure Usagi's got more than 1 friend, so the chances of it bein' some-one we know ain't exactly high."

"Well, maybe it _was_ Gen." I said throwing a pout at him before turning back to Usagi, grinning.

"It was not." He laughed. "It was a Police Inspector and his family who I am aquatinted with."

Donny blinked, sitting up slightly as he listened.

"Oh sweet!" I said, wrapping the covers of the futon around myself. Even indoors it was still kinda chilly. "Did ya go all Starsky and Hutch and solve mysteries and stuff while you were there?"

Usagi pulled a face at me but smiled. "I do not know what you are referring to exactly, but no. I was not involved in any police investigations during my visit."

"Awwww." I sank, disappointed at not getting a good story out of this.

Usagi must've caught my drift because he then added. "Not this time at least."

I sat up again quickly, grabbing the cue. "You mean you have before?!"

Usagi grinned and gave a nod. "Sometimes, when he feels I would be of use to him."

"Oh this I gotta hear." Raph said, sitting up as well.

Donny squirmed around where he was sitting, looking around along his belt for a few moments before he pulled a small notebook from some-where, flipping some pages before going still again, watching Usagi intently.

We spent the rest of the evening listening to some of Usagi's stories which were always fun to hear. Whenever he finished one, one of us would pipe up and give him one of our stories in return. I was having a lot of fun trying to rank them on the weirdness scale. I was pretty convinced we'd win that game since I don't think any-one has weirder stories than us! Not even Usagi! But I kinda forgot about it half-way through the evening and when I remembered again I'd lost track of the score and just gave up.

It was fun. I was bummed out when we realised it'd gotten late and we should get some sleep. If it wasn't for the damn snow I'd have asked if we could stay another night. I thought about doing so anyway. One more night probably wouldn't hurt. It's gonna feel very lame to just go home tomorrow.

---------

"No Mikey." Leo sighed.

I sulked. Why did I get the feeling I was hearing the word 'no' a lot lately?

"One more day wouldn't make that much of a difference though right?" I said, kicking up some snow as we walked.

"Maybe not for us." Leo said, turning to face me. "But did you stop to think maybe Usagi can't afford it?"

"Again, you seem to doubt my skills as a bodyguard Leonardo." Usagi said, giving him a lop-sided grin.

Leo gave a groan, putting his hand over his face. "I'm not trying to insult you Usagi, but I really don't wanna rely on your money if you need it to feed yourself."

Usagi chuckled. "I know. I am joking."

"Don't" Raph said. "Leo ain't got much of a sense of humour lately."

We were walking down the same road we'd trudged over yesterday, but today the trip was a lot more fun. For one thing, it was a lot warmer and the sun was actually out. It kinda made the surrounding scenery blinding with the light reflecting off the snow and stuff, but hey I wasn't gonna complain! As long as I wasn't freezing my tail off I was happy. Although the improvement in the weather didn't seem to change Leo's mind much. He still didn't want us spending a second night here.

It was probably a little late to try and convince him too. We were walking towards a bunch of trees where a forest started, heading for somewhere where we could draw our symbols and stuff to open the portal back home. We weren't really aiming for any specific place or anything like that, we were just tying to get somewhere where we wouldn't be seen very well. We needed a surface we could scrawl on, but somehow the side of the inn's wall hadn't seemed that great an idea, so Usagi suggested we find some or other large rock or something in the forest. The trees would hide us better and we could leave without people freaking out and calling Usagi a wizard or something.

We left the path and walked in among the trees, dodging bushes and roots. I was looking around as we did so. The only forest I'd ever really been to was the woods around Casey's farm. Oh, and Central park but I don't think that counts. This was completely different. The trees were completely different than those at the farm and much taller. They were also packed together a lot closer and looked older and twisted. A lot of them were bare but there were a few of them which had really sharp, needle-like leaves. It was weird though. Even though they were mostly bare and there wasn't this giant canopy over our heads, it was still hard to see the sky above us. Sunlight shone down and it was bright, but the trees were so high and their branches so woven together I could only see a few blue patches every few minutes.

"Pretty cool." I said, looking down again to look at the weird bushes and stuff we walked past.

"It is better in the summer." Usagi commented, turning to look at me.

"I don't doubt it." I said. "but it's still nice. We don't get out much ya know."

"Yeah." Raph said. "We just go inta outer space and the distant future and stuff. We're very shut-in."

I stuck my tongue out at him. I didn't know why he felt the need to bring everybody down today.

"C'mon guys, knock it off." Leo said, turning to frown at us. He stopped in his track, looking past us. "Hold on. We're missing some-one."

"Oh for the love of..." Raph grumbled, turning around. "Hey Don!! We're gonna leave without ya if ya don't put away your little diary!!"

"Alright alright! Geez!" We heard a voice call back, followed by the sound of snapping twigs as Donny pushed through a dry bush to catch up, his notebook and pencil clutched in one of his hands.

"This ain't a nature-walk Don!" Raph said irritably.

"I'm just trying to write down what I can while I can." Donny said, giving him a dark look.

"You shouldn't break from the group though" Leo said, frowning at him lightly. "I don't want any unnecessary trouble."

Donny rolled his eyes. "I wasn't _that_ far behind you guys Leo. Sheesh."

"No, Leonardo is right." Usagi said, but he didn't look as grumpy as Leo did. "Bandits tend to stick to the roads, but there are still dangers in the woods if you do not know the lay of the land that well. Not to mention wild animals. They tend to become aggressive in the winter months "

We started walking again. I was practically chewing my tongue off to stop myself from asking what kind of wild animals there'd be in a dimension where all the animals were people, but I didn't feel like getting a Leo lecture. He seemed to be in a bad mood.

We continued walking, looking around for something we could write on. After a short trip the trees opened up slightly and we reached a small stream. The trees thickened up again on the other side of it. Although it had snowed yesterday the water was still flowing and didn't look like it was iced over anywhere. The stream was sort of cut in half by some large smooth stones lying both in the water as well as on the banks next to it, making some very small and pathetic-looking rapids. One of the rocks was a large boulder that seemed to have rolled there from somewhere a long time ago. The one side of it worn away at the bottom by the constant running water and the other side of it had a large collection of dried out brown moss. The top of it was wet from where the layer of snow had melted in the sun.

"That looks pretty good." Leo said, turning to Donny. "What d'you think?"

Donny nodded. "It's big enough. But I think we'll need to make our own puddle instead of using the stream itself. We don't want to open a portal the size of a house or anything."

"Can you do that?" I asked, turning to stare at him wide-eyed.

"I'd rather not find out." He said.

"It seems private enough." Usagi nodded, looking the area over.

"Alrighty." Don said, pulling out the stick of chalk we'd brought with us to get home. "Come check me will you Leo?"

Leo nodded, walking with him to make sure they got the symbols and patterns right for our own dimension.

"Would you like me to help?" Usagi asked, giving Leo a smile.

"No, we got it." He replied, not bothering to look at Usagi as he walked over to crouch beside Donny and they set about drawing on the large rock.

"If it doesn't work, d'you think Leo'd let us stick around longer?" I said, turning to grin at Usagi.

"Mmm." He said thoughtfully, frowning lightly at Leo's shell. He wasn't really listening.

"'Sup Bunny-Boy?" Raph asked, frowning at him.

Usagi gave a slightly aggravated breath, tilting his head slightly. "Is it my imagination, or is Leonardo behaving rather coldly towards me?"

"What d'you mean?" I asked, turning to look at Leo too.

Usagi frowned for a few minutes before shaking his head. "Maybe I am just misreading things."

"He's been kinda moody lately." Raph said. "Mostly 'cause he's been goin' crazy worryin' about you."

"I am a little unsure what I think of that." Usagi said, still watching Leo as he and Donny had a small argument over a specific symbol. "It is not as if I had forgotten you. I had every intention to let you guys know that I was fine. I just did not assume he would want news so quickly."

"Well..." I said, feeling like I should stick up for him. "It was 2 months dude. That's kinda a while you know?"

"Not really." Usagi said. "I have had to wait longer than that for much more pressing news."

"Yeah." Raph grumbled. "But we're use ta gettin' responses from people right away where we're from."

"Are you criticizing me?" Usagi asked, turning to Raph.

He shook his head. "Nah. I'm just sayin', it's a lot easier ta get in contact with people back home."

"Hmm." Usagi said again, turning back to stare at Leo.

"Alright, we got it." Donny said, turning and calling us closer.

We walked over. Leo was crouched next to the stream, cupping his hands in the water to get enough for a puddle in front of his and Donny's doodles. He turned and quickly took the step or two towards the boulder before dropping the water. He shook his hands afterwards.

"Good Lord that's cold." He said, flexing his fingers.

"Are you all set up?" Usagi asked, more to Leo than Donny.

Leo nodded, rubbing his hands together. "Yeah. Just the incantation left and we're out of here."

"I am sorry it was such a poor time of year." Usagi said. "I would have liked us to have more time to catch up."

Leo turned to him, staring at him quietly before giving a nod and a small smile. "Yeah. But that's just our luck as usual isn't it?"

Usagi smiled back at this, perhaps a little happier than what was necessary. "Fate has a strange sense of humour."

"You better hurry Leo." Donny said. "I hate to interrupt but the puddle's gonna soak into the ground if we don't do this now."

Leo sighed and nodded, turning to the symbols and putting his hands together. He started saying the weird spell we used to open the portal. I had no idea what he was saying. I've never known. I know it sounded familiar and had something to do with something Master Splinter taught us a while ago, but I wasn't very good at memorizing stuff like this. Katas and stuff are one thing 'cause those were physical moves and practical things which made sense. But bogus words that I didn't understand just refused to get stuck in my brain. I was glad we relied on Leo for stuff like this.

I waited patiently, standing next to Raph and Donny as we waited for the glowing door to open to take us home.

Leo finished, looking up at his and Don's drawings, keeping his hands together.

Nothing happened.

We waited for a few moments, staring expectingly at the symbols and the puddle of water. When it was obvious nothing was gonna happen we looked at each other.

"Did ya say it right?" Raph said with a frown, coming over to Leo.

"Yeah." Leo said, frowning at the symbols, checking them. "Yeah I know I did."

Donny frowned, coming over to check the symbols himself. "Maybe you were talking too fast or something?"

"No. I was just saying it like I always do." Leo said, his eyes tracing the symbols.

"Well I know these are right." Donny said, although he was checking them too. "Maybe try again?"

"Perhaps the water soaked into the soil too much." Usagi said, kneeling down and checking the puddle. "Try having some-one stand ready to drop the liquid and try again?"

Leo nodded. I crossed my fingers and said a silent prayer but without any luck. Leo turned to me.

"Mikey, you're on water duty."

I gave a long, drawn out groan at this. "Aw C'mon Leo! Why me?"

"Just do it Mike." He sighed.

I whined but trudged over to the water which I knew was gonna be freezing cold.

"Alright, stand back guys." Leo said to the others, standing in front of the symbols again and placing his hands together. "When I say Mikey, get over here and drop the water in front of the rock."

"Yeah yeah." I grumbled, dipping my hands into the stream.

I felt a shudder go up my whole body. It felt like I was dipping my hands into a bucket of needles. I don't think I've ever felt anything that cold before! Well, I probably have but at that moment it was pretty damn hard to remember. I tried not to think about it, cupping my hands and waiting for Leo's signal.

"Ok Mikey." He said.

I instantly pulled my hands out of the stream and quickly turned, dumping my handful in front of the rock before taking a few steps back, shaking my hands to try and get the blood flowing again.

The second I dropped the water Leo repeated his little mantra, his eyes shut as he concentrated. I could hear him speaking each syllable clearly this time, sounding out the words carefully but confidently. I waited, rubbing my hands together and staring at the rock. The puddle of water lay unmoving, slowly growing smaller and smaller as the ground around the boulder soaked it up. It didn't swirl, it didn't attach itself to the stone, it didn't even do so much as ripple. The drawings and writing on the rock remained nothing more but scrawled chalk. A trickle of melted snow was slowly running down from the top of the boulder, running down over the marks, washing away their lines as it went.

Nothing happened. No blue glow, no gust of wind, no swirling portal.

"Dammit." Leo spat, unfolding his hands and once again checking their symbols. "I _know_ I'm saying it right!'"

"Are ya sure?" Raph said, going over again.

"_Yes_ I'm sure!" Leo snapped, rounding on him. "I'm the one who always says this stuff remember? Have I ever gotten it wrong before?!"

"Well. No." Raph admitted, frowning at the boulder. He turned to Usagi. "Ya sure this rock should work?"

"Yes." Usagi nodded with a deep frown. "I have used smaller to travel to the Nexus."

"The Nexus!" Donny said, walking over quickly. "Leo, try the Nexus! Maybe one of us just made a mistake, but we both know the Nexus symbols better."

Leo gave a nod, but he was still frowning darkly. "It's worth a try."

They went about cleaning off their chalk and redrawing them for the Battle Nexus instead. Raph was watching them as they did so, hoping to help pick out any mistakes or anything. I waited, standing next to Usagi. I could feel my heartbeat speeding up slightly. I saw Usagi give me a quick glance before walking over himself, peering over Leo and Donny's shells.

He nodded. "That is correct. I use the same system when I travel."

"Alright." Leo said. "Let's try this again."

I quickly jumped forward, hurrying to the stream again. I didn't complain about the cold this time, dunking my hands into the stream again and cupping them, ready to carry the water over when Leo said.

Again, he signalled and I dropped it in place before standing back. Again the complex words and sentences. I held my breath, staring at the symbols as hard as I could, thinking maybe I could somehow will them into working. But they didn't, and again Leo finished without anything happening. None of us said anything for a few moments as we stared anxiously at the rock, hoping that it was some delayed reaction or something. But the seconds ticked by and the rock remained stubbornly silent.

I felt my breath quicken as I turned to Donny hopelessly. "What does that mean Don?!"

He stared at the symbols, his mouth open. I could see the cogs spinning frantically in his head as he tried to think. He shook his head at me.

"This is crazy!" Leo yelled, tuning to the rest of us. "I know I'm saying it right! I know it!!"

"Hey woah! No-one's blamin' you Leo!" Raph said quickly. "It ain't you."

"Raphael-san is right." Usagi added. "I know the incantation and you are saying it correctly. I do not understand this at all."

"Maybe if you say it!" I said, turning to Usagi quickly. I knew I shouldn't have. I knew I should've stuck up for Leo and not make him feel like he was failing us, but I was desperate. And more than that I was starting to get scared.

Usagi blinked, staring at me quietly for a few moments before turning to look at Leo. Leo stared back, but said nothing. Usagi gave a nod, stepping forward.

But it didn't matter. We repeated the whole exercise with Usagi doing the words this time and again, absolutely nothing happened. Leo tried a fifth time after that, and when that failed he tried again. But no matter how he spoke the words, how he and Donny wrote the symbols or how quickly I dropped the puddle of water, every single time we got the same result.

Leo said nothing, glaring at the stone, his hands clenched into fists tightly. Usagi stared at his shell for a few moments before he walked over to him and stood next to him. He said nothing, but I saw him raise a hand and place it on Leo's shoulder carefully.

Panic was rising up in me. I'd been fighting hard to keep it down but I was losing. I turned to Raph. "What d'we do now Raphie?"

He said nothing, gritting his teeth.

"What're we gonna do?!" I repeated, more loudly.

"I dunno Mike." He said with in a dark voice.

"We're not _stuck_ here are we?!" I said, somehow hoping if one of them said 'no' the portal would somehow magically open.

But no-one said anything.

**Xxxxx**

_._


	12. Panic and Loyalty

_I don't own TMNT or UY_

**Xxxxx**

It didn't make sense to me at all. I knew that Leonardo was saying the incantation correctly, and I had looked over his and Donatello's inscriptions, so why was the door not opening? I couldn't figure it out at all. However, I was not going to offer to draw the symbols myself. I had faith in my friends' competence and did not want it to seem that I thought they were making mistakes. Especially since Leonardo still seemed annoyed with me and I knew he put pride in himself for being reliable. Besides, there was nothing I could do that they haven't tried. The way to the other side was, for whatever reason, blocked.

I sat crouched in front of the boulder, staring at the marks written on it with a hard frown, as if maybe I could figure out the mystery if I simply looked hard enough. But there was no answer waiting for me. Eventually I sighed and stood up, turning to my friends again.

"I do not understand it at all." I sighed, turning and walking over to them. "I do not see anything out of place. It just does not make sense."

"If it's not the writing and it's not the mantra, then I don't get it. What're we doing wrong?" Donatello said, rubbing his chin as he frowned deeply to himself.

"Maybe we're just in a wrong place or somethin'" Raphael said, turning to Leonardo. "Like how we need that specific alley for gettin' to the Nexus and junk. Maybe it's just a bad rock."

Leonardo was frowning hard to himself. He made a noise at this, thinking it over. "I guess that could be it... but I dunno Raph. I mean, have you ever had something like this happen Usagi?"

I shook my head. "I am afraid not no. Although I suppose something like that could be possible, although I have never encountered it.

"Hey, d'you think it's 'cause of the weather?" Mikey said. We turned to stare at him. None of us seemed to understand what he meant.

"Like, ya know how when it gets really bad back home in winter?" He was talking with his hands as much as his voice. "Like when it really starts snowing badly or if there's a bad storm or it rains too much. Ya know how it can do stuff like scramble the cable or knocks out the signal on our phones or we get black outs and stuff? Maybe it's something like that!"

I said nothing, turning to see if any-one else had even the vaguest idea what he was talking about. Apparently so since they all seemed less than impressed with his suggestion. I won't lie, sometimes I get very annoyed when they seem to start a discussion only they understood. I never said anything though, they really couldn't help it.

"Do you have any idea how many ways that doesn't work?" Donatello said. "First of all, I think the weather would have to be exactly the same all over the planet you're travelling to or from, second of all, radio-waves and tv broadcasts are one thing, but we're talking about a wormhole here. It's not affected by physical things at all, and lastly, although I dunno why I even need to explain this, There _is_ no weather at moment Mikey!"

"Alright alright!" Mikey snapped back angrily. "Jeez! Shoot me for trying to help!"

"Hey, fighting over why isn't gonna help us." Leonardo said, frowning at both of them. "Right now we have to figure out what we're gonna do exactly."

Mikey and Donatello were still shooting each other dirty looks but the went quiet, turning to Leonardo instead. Leonardo sighed, turning to Raphael and I who seemed the only people who weren't losing our heads over this.

"What d'you think guys? Personally I say we shouldn't write it off just yet. To be honest I have no idea how these portal things work and I guess there could be a weird scientific reason for why it's not working, but it could just be something that'll fix itself." Leonardo said. He was keeping his voice calm but I could see the concern on his face.

"Hmm." Raphael grumbled, crossing his arms and staring at the boulder, as if it might have done something while we were talking. "I dunno Leo. I guess it's possible but somethin' in my gut just tells me we got ourselves a problem here." he turned back to Leonardo. "Either way, I don' see how standin' around doin' the same thing over and over again and not gettin' anywhere is gonna help. I dunno about you but that's just gonna wear me down and make me go nuts after a while."

Leonardo nodded, turning to Mikey and Donatello again. "What about you? D'you wanna try again?"

Mikey gave a moan. "Leo my hands are gonna fall of if we keep this up! That water's freezing and to be honest, getting frostbite was not exactly something I wanted to do while I was here."

"I need a breather." Donatello nodded. "Besides it's not that cold. I think we can risk taking a break before we try this again."

Leonardo nodded. "I agree. Let's not make ourselves crazy doing this over and over again. We'll relax, burn off some steam and then try again later."

"We could try a different location." I added. "I do not know if it will make any difference but we might as well try everything and not leave any questions about what is going on."

Leonardo nodded, turning to his brothers. "Alright guys. Let's go."

"Where're we going?" Mikey asked, looking over his shoulder at the boulder as he trotted after Leonardo, heading back the way we'd come.

"I dunno." Leonardo said, turning to me. "I guess we're kinda following you at the moment. I'm sure you've got a better idea of what you're doing than we do."

I thought for a moment. Normally I didn't plan my journeys too rigidly. I just made a rough destination in my mind and then saw what happened as I tried getting there, seeing what changed as I went. Unless there was something serious I needed to pay attention to I normally just saw what happened.

I turned back to Leonardo, giving a light shrug. "I am not sure. We could travel to the nearest village if you like. The weather is nice for walking and it can cut off some time on my own travelling plans."

"That's such an old man thing to do." Mikey said, managing a grin at me.

"Hey you shut up." Donatello said, frowning at him although he didn't seem too serious about it. "I'd actually like to check out a town while we can."

"Oh yeah I forgot." Raphael said, giving Donatello a sideways glance. "Don still thinks we're here ta sightsee."

"Hey, it's not my fault if you guys are all boring and just wanna sit around doing nothing." Donatello grumbled at him. "I just happen to be interested in getting some culture."

"'Culture'? Like what? Goin' to the opera and stuff?" Raphael said irritably.

"I think he meant culture in general." Mikey said. "Ya know, not like high-class stuff or anything. Just... Culture. It doesn't need to be like sophisticated or anything. I mean technically even like... ancient Egypt would be 'culture' right?"

"Are you saying we can't learn anything here just because it's set in a different time period?" Donatello said irritably. "You _do_ know that just because people lived a longer time ago doesn't make them stupid right?!"

"Howah!" I exclaimed, shaking my head and turning to Leonardo. "They do speak their minds don't they? I feel like I should be insulted!"

I actually managed to get a smile out of him at this. "Don't feel bad. They tend to act like idiots no matter where we go."

"Hey! Who're you callin' an idiot?!" Raphael snapped. "Don' think I can't hear ya just 'cause you're talkin' to the rabbit Leo!"

"Well, you are kinda acting like a bunch of morons." Leonardo said, turning around to smile at Raphael through a frown. "Also, is it _that_ hard to call the guy by his name Raph?"

"He ain't complained yet." Raphael shrugged.

I was smiling to myself, partly in amusement but also because I was feeling relieved. When the portal refused to open tensions had started to run rather high between them, and on top of this I had noticed Mikey seemed to be feeling a little fearful. I was glad to hear they'd somewhat relaxed a little bit. Or at least that's what I assumed bickering with each other meant, even if Raphael seemed less than cheerful. I could still sense a dark cloud hovering over every-one's mood though, but every-one seemed to be trying to ignore it, hoping if they didn't mention it it would go away on its own.

I was hoping a different location and giving the portal some time would fix our problem, but truth be told, I had a nagging doubt eating away at me. I was trying to convince myself that I was merely being overly pessimistic and that it would be alright when we tried again. But somehow, I felt this small stone of certainty in my stomach that, no matter how long we waited, it wasn't going to work. I pushed the thought aside, concentrating instead on our walk and what I could point out to my friends as we travelled and what I could talk about to divert our attention away from the concern. Every time the thought rose in my own mind I merely fought it down again with 'It'll be alright. Don't worry too much. It'll work out.'. But in truth, I could feel my instincts telling me 'You're lying to yourself, and you know it.'

I didn't say this to the others though. It was the last thing they needed to hear right now.

We travelled along the road since I didn't feel it'd be safe to go cross-country. I generally didn't like steering too far from a path if I could help it. Sometimes I had to, but I found roads and paths were the safest way to travel. In the summer and spring I sometimes cut my own path according to how I felt like travelling, but in winter it wasn't a very smart thing to do. The snow could hide things like rocks or holes in the ground that you could trip over and hurt yourself with. I've never had the misfortune of it happening to me thankfully, or at least when I did end up doing something foolish I'd always managed to walk away from it without getting badly hurt, but I've heard thousands of stories all throughout my life of people who fell, tripping over something in the snow, and ended up breaking a limb or twisting something and needing to take time to recuperate.

Time to get better was not exactly an issue for me. The problem was the money. Getting hurt or falling sick was always a high risk as it would mean, more often than not, needing to find shelter at an inn where food and warmth was readily available. Once or twice, the kindness of strangers had saved me from a very bad situation, but I knew better than to expect people to readily open their doors to a vagabond _ronin. _Thankfully, some people seemed to be blessed with kindness and would help without any thought of payment. However this was rare, and I tried my best to offer some token of gratitude in whatever way I could. I'd made some steadfast friends in this way. Not always, but on rare occasions I'd managed to find a friend I would see more than once in my travels, and I would find they would continue to offer help and support, to which I continued to try and repay.

Eventually the whole payment and repayment thing is just forgotten though. That's what friendship is. You eventually do things without considering the equal exchange. I guess that's what I was doing right now. If you had told me I could just wish Leonardo and his brothers the best and left them to continue my own travels I would call you completely insane. The very idea of it would seem like the act of a madman to me. How could any-one just walk away from a situation like this and not feel involved?

You become emotionally invested in your friends. And in doing that, their problems and concerns become your own.

"Are big rocks and stuff easy to find around here?" Mikey asked after a while.

We were still travelling down the road, not having come across a village or town yet.

I turned to him, not really sure what he was asking. "I am not sure. As much as anywhere else I suppose."

"Well." Mikey said. "I mean, if we're gonna try opening the portal thingy again, are we gonna have to go on this giant quest to find a rock to draw on?"

"No I do not think so." I shook my head.

"You're freaking yourself out Mikey." Leonardo said. "Don't worry about it ok? It'll be fine."

"I can't help it Leo." Mikey said, coming to a stop. "I mean, I know we kinda worked out a plan and stuff about what to do, but I can't help but be a little worried ok? I know we said we're gonna try relax for a while and blow off some steam and stuff, but I can't get it outta my head. What if we really _are_ stuck here?"

They said, nothing, but I could see them frown grimly at each other. Mikey had voiced the thing which was on all our minds.

"We will work it out once that problem arises." I said when no-one else spoke.

"How?" Mikey said, turning to me. "I mean, I know you're just kinda acting the tour-guide at the moment Usagi, but what're we gonna do if this isn't just some fluke or something and it _is_ a big problem? I know I was saying an extra night and stuff might be cool but I'm not stupid! I know Leo was being right with the whole weather thing. What're we gonna do if we can't go back? It's still gonna be cold and we're still gonna be without jackets and stuff and we're still gonna be in trouble! Only more so 'cause now we don't even have an emergency exit or anything!"

"Calm down Mikey." Donatello said, frowning at him with something that almost looked like concern. "I know it's nerve-racking but freaking out over it isn't gonna help."

"Ignoring it isn't gonna help either." Mikey said, crossing his arms and sulking to himself. "I'm sorry guys, but this is driving me nuts!"

"Bubble-head's got a point." Raphael said. "We should try comin' up with a plan B or somethin' Leo."

Leonardo gave a long sigh at this. "I'm not happy about it. Having a Plan B seems like a way to invite bad luck in, but I agree. Just pretending this isn't a big problem isn't gonna help any-one." He looked up again. "If you guys are up for it, maybe we should just try again now and get it over with. I know we haven't reach a town or anything yet, but if we're just gonna go crazy pretending we're not all thinking about this then maybe we should just face the problem head-on and get it out of the way."

I turned to look at Donatello, but he said nothing against this plan. I was feeling bad for him. He seemed really enthusiastic about seeing what towns and villages look like here, and yet it seemed fate was conspiring against him. But Leonardo was right. Ignoring something hovering over our heads was just silly.

"Alright." Raph said, turning to me. "Any ideas where we'd find another rock?"

I looked around at the scenery. Searching for Rocks. There's something I never thought I'd be spending most of the day doing.

"The road turns up ahead." I said, pointing. "See? It slopes towards the mountains. If we head that way we should find some kind of boulder or rock-face we could use."

"Should we be hanging around mountains when it's snowy like this?" Donatello asked. "I mean, I dunno, I'm not from here, but aren't there avalanches and stuff like that we should be worried about?"

I shook my head. "The snow has only just arrived, and it is still too cold for it to be melting and shifting. We should be fine."

"Ya know, I'm never sure if I should be worried that ya seem to use the word '_should_' a lot Bunny-Boy." Raphael said, giving me a suspicious look.

"Leave him alone Raph." Leonardo said as he started to walk again, motioning for us to follow. "He's just trying to help."

"I'm just sayin'." Raphael said, following after him. "It's not exactly somethin' I wanna hear right now."

"Ignore him." Donatello said to me. "He's just being a jerk."

"It is alright." I said, falling in step beside him.

"I believe you Usagi!" Mikey said, trotting after us until he came to my other side, giving me a smile. "I mean you should know right?"

I smiled back, although I wasn't really sure what to say in response to this. I knew what to be wary of and what would be alright, true, but I didn't see how it was something worthy of praise. It was just experience.

We continued our walk, although we travelled slightly faster now that we had a clear set goal in mind. We were all tense, worried of what might happen when we tried this exercise all over again. However, we were still able to distract ourselves with sights and sounds as we went.

Donatello was carrying a small book with him which he tended to pull out and write in every few moments. I tried to see what he was doing once, but I could not make heads or tails of it. He was using the strange writing from his dimension which I could not read. I had seen some foreign documents in my own world which used the same symbols, but I had never found a reason to try and learn them. I knew a few people who had made the effort, but I did not have the time nor the resources for it. Perhaps it was foolish of me and I could benefit from the writing brought in by the Southerners, but I had just never had the opportunity to give it the attention it deserved. However, Donatello's small sketches I understood perfectly, and I eventually realised he was documenting whatever little thing he came across that he found interesting.

The sun was starting to lower already. I don't think the others were keeping their eye on it as closely, but I could see it had passed noon already and was now starting to slowly sink in the sky. It was not very late yet, but I was trying to keep into consideration how far it might be to the nearest town from where we were, how long it would take to get there as well as how much daylight we had left. They sky had been relatively clear all day, but it was starting to cloud over slowly but surely. By nightfall it will be overcast again, and I was certain it was going to snow before morning. Leonardo might not be happy thinking of a second plan, but I couldn't help it. Whether fate decided to punish me for it or not, I felt we should have a course of action to take if this went wrong.

The mood was tense, but pleasant as we continued. Mikey seemed to have forgotten his worries from earlier and was now making comments about anything he found interesting. He asked things such as whether it was always this snowy in winter, or how cold it could get when it was right in the middle of the season. Sometimes he would ask what some of the biggest dangers were when travelling the countryside, or where I got food from when I didn't rely on the inns. Eventually Donatello got in on the game, although his questions were more to do with what we were seeing along the road. I felt rather foolish since there were a lot of questions I really didn't know the answer to, such as things to do with birds and other wildlife that I really couldn't understand his fascination with. At some point during our walk a wild _tokage_ ran across our path. Mikey ran after it, scaring the poor thing to death before Raphael ran after Mikey to reprimand him for acting like a child.

We reached the point where a path broke off continuing upwards, but we stayed with the main road, following it along the foot of the mountain. We walked on, now focusing our attention on trying to find a good place to try opening a doorway again. After some time we came to a steep cliff-face, free of snow and far too steep for grass to grow on. We found a spot where the stone was smooth and clear enough to write on.

I stood back, watching carefully as once again Donatello and Leonardo wrote the inscription for their home world. Mikey and Raphael stayed behind, standing next to me as they waited. Raphael seemed solemn, a dark expression on his face as he watched his two brothers work. He hadn't said anything, but I could see he was doubting the success of this as much as I was. Next to him was Mikey who was staring at Leonardo and Donatello with an almost heartbreakingly hopeful expression. I noticed he was standing rather close to his brother. I felt a deep pang of sympathy for him. We were all nervous and stressed by this turn of events, but Mikey actually seemed openly afraid by this situation. Not so much as to be cowardly, but enough so that it showed on his face more clearly than the others.

"What're we gonna use for water?" Donatello asked Leonardo.

"I hadn't thought of that." Leonardo said, looking around.

"Here." I said as a thought struck me. I unhooked my flask of water, handing it to Leonardo.

He frowned at it, not taking it from me. "Don't you need that?"

"I can fill it up easily." I said, something I was not sure about but I didn't want to argue about it with him right now. "Go on."

He made a noise but took it from me, turning back to the writing on the rock wall. He handed it over to Donatello who took a few moments to look the flask over with interest.

"Focus Don." Leonardo said, putting his hands together.

Donatello pulled his attention away from it, walking closer and pouring its contents on the ground in front of their symbols. I suppressed the urge to sigh as my water reserve was poured onto the dry ground. I only hoped we reached a village soon where I could refill it.

Leonardo recited his mantra, speaking his words clearly as he stared meaningfully at the symbols on the wall. I watched intently, saying my own silent prayers that it would open for them. I still didn't understand why they were blocked from their home.

A ripple of a memory ran through me, of hard times and being unable to return home, blocked by enemies and driven away by rival Lords. I was almost annoyed that such an old experience could still return and cause an emotional response in me when it was no longer relevant to my life. But it made me understand. It made me sympathise and know what this situation must feel like.

Leonardo finished his recitation and stared at the white marks he and Donatello had made. I could almost feel the others hold their breath. We waited, afraid of saying anything that might break whatever small chance we had of this succeeding. But the pause grew long, and eventually we had to exhale, realising we were waiting for nothing.

"That's not fair." I heard Mikey say.

Leonardo stepped forward, putting his hand against the rock-face as if to make sure it was still solid.

"So now what?!" Raphael said.

"I don't know." Leonardo said. He sounded angry, although I didn't think Raphael's question had been aimed at him specifically.

"Should we try again?" Donatello asked desperately.

"For what?" Raphael said, turning to glare at him. "We ain't got any more water ta chuck around. Not that it would matter anyway." He grit his teeth. "It's pretty obvious we're screwed! We can sit here playin' this little game till we're blue in the face but it ain't gonna help is it?! We're stuck! End of story! And whoever's idea of a joke this is is probably laughin' their ass off at us dumb schmucks doin' this bullshit over and over again!"

"Calm down Raphie." Mikey spoke up, his voice sounded shaky.

"I ain't calmin' down!" He spat, his voice getting louder. "I've had it with this shit! Listen, if you guys wanna sit here like a bunch of idiots doin' this over and over again then go ahead! Be my guests! But I'm done! I've had it!"

He turned around and started walking way, marching down the path.

"Hey!" Leonardo said, snapping his attention away from the wall. "Where are you going?!"

"I'm goin' to find somewhere where I won't fall asleep and _die_ durin' the night!" He yelled back furiously. "If ya wanna follow me then go ahead! I really don't care!"

Leonardo made a noise in the back of his throat. "We don't have time for your little temper tantrum Raph! Look if you wanna be mad then go ahead! But running off like an idiot isn't gonna help any-one! Do you hear me?!"

"Bite me Leo!!" He yelled back, speeding up his walk.

"_Raphael!_" Leonardo yelled angrily, moving to follow him.

"Let him go Leo." Donatello said.

Leonardo gave a low growl, glaring furiously at his back, but he listened to his brother and stayed.

"What... What are we gonna do now?" Mikey asked for what felt like the hundredth time. "What if it _never_ opens again Leo! What're we gonna do?!"

"I don't _know_ ok?!" Leonardo snapped, turning to him instead. Mikey faltered, staring at him with large eyes. Leonardo seemed to get a grip on himself at this and straightened, running a hand over his head and closing his eyes. "I just... I don't know ok Mike?"

I looked back and forth between the remaining brothers. Donatello was doing his best not to look the other two in the eye while Mikey was staring at Leonardo with fear clear on his face. I turned to look back at the rock. The symbols were clear and I knew they were right, just as Leonardo had been faultless in his recitation of the mantra. I lifted my gaze to the sky. Clouds were starting to melt together above us and the light was failing, going from the warm yellow we'd been blessed with the whole afternoon to a gloomier white, slowly turning to grey. I turned back to my friends, each lost in their own thoughts as they tried to wrestle down their growing panic.

I walked over to Leonardo, putting a hand on his shoulder. He jerked his head to me, slightly startled.

"It is getting late." I said gently. "We should head towards town before it gets dark."

He blinked at me, lowering his hand from his head as he frowned slightly.

"Where're we gonna sleep?" Mikey asked miserably.

I turned to him. "If we do not find a town we should at the very least find an inn along the way." I turned back to Leonardo. "I think we could all use a hot meal and some rest before we decide what to do."

"Are you sure?" Donatello said to me. "I mean, We've already cost you more than we meant to. Do you even have enough for something like that?"

I gave him a nod. "I have enough." I wasn't lying. Although I wasn't sure how much I would have afterwards. I turned back to Leonardo. "And I will not leave you here."

Leonardo sighed. He seemed pained by it, but he nodded reluctantly. "I guess we don't really have a choice."

"Thanks Usagi." I heard Donatello say.

I merely gave a nod, turning to walk again but keeping my eyes on them, urging them to keep going. "Come on. Before Raphael gets too far ahead of us."

Leonardo turned and followed me which seemed to spark the others into moving as well and we continued on our way, albeit at a much slower pace than before.

"Master Splinter's gonna be worried." Leonardo said softly.

"Dude... _I'm_ worried." Mikey said unhappily.

"It will be alright." I said. I was running plans and things we could do to resolve this through my head as I walked, trying to come up with something that might help. Both in getting them home as well as how I was going to be able to continue keeping us all out of the cold. The snow had only just started to fall, and it was early this year. I was concerned about what tomorrow or the day after would be like, and I worried about their lack of preparation for the cold.

We walked in silence.

A short while later we came across Raphael. He was leaning against the cliff-face, glaring at the ground furiously. He said nothing, but pushed off the stone and fell into step behind us as we continued to follow the path.

**Xxxxx**

_Tokage – the Lizard creatures that inhabit Usagi's world, as seen in "The Real world" of the TMNT cartoon and every damn UY comic book ever. XD_

_'Southerners' – Western cultures (specifically the Portuguese) started arriving in Japan via the south and were generally referred to as "Southerners' or 'Southern Barbarians'._

_._

_This Chapter was difficult to write. The next one was easy though. Go figure._


	13. Speaking Out

_I don't own TMNT or UY._

_Early Update. Because I can._

**Xxxxx**

I was still mad at him.

I hated myself for it, but for some reason I just couldn't drive it out of my head. Here he was, going completely out of his way to help us, paying for our damn food and a roof over our heads, spending his hard earned money on us, giving us support both financially as well as emotionally, and yet I was _still_ annoyed and irritated with him. What the hell is wrong with me?!

What made it worse was that somehow his selflessness was feeding my irritation. I have no way of even beginning to figure that one out. It was as if the loyalty and help he was giving us now was bringing more attention to the fact that he completely forgot about us after he'd sorted out the mess with the battle he was in. I don't care what kind of excuse he had! The fact remains that he completely forgot us and instead carried on his life as normal without even doing so much as to send us a message through some-one or something. To now have him tripping over himself to help us somehow just made me angry. As if he was only being nice to make me forget his screw up. I knew this wasn't true. I knew Usagi didn't think that way and neither should I. But even if I knew it wasn't true, the anger and disappointment still sat in my mind.

But I knew there was no way Usagi was even thinking along those lines. He'd probably put the whole thing of not contacted us out of his mind already, something which just made me even angrier. But I knew he wasn't being nice to be manipulative. He was just helping us because that's what he did. So I kept my mouth shut. I didn't bring up the subject, but even more so I made an effort not to talk to him at all unless he spoke to me first. Partly because I didn't want to snap at him for no reason, but also because I didn't really want to talk to him right now. At least not until I felt better about this.

So I walked silently with him and my brothers along the road, hoping to find a town or an inn before nightfall. None of us said anything much which was fine by me. It gave me an excuse to keep to myself and try to focus on more pressing issues, like what the hell we were gonna do now.

Usagi was helping, but I knew for a fact that regardless of what he said, Usagi couldn't keep paying for our food and shelter. He kept joking that me saying so was a slam against his skills with his sword and his potential for getting hired as a bodyguard or mercenary or whatever else Usagi did to make himself some money. I knew he didn't mean it and was just trying to stop me from feeling guilty for using him, but at the same time this bugged me. His joking grated my nerves a little bit, but apart from that I was worried about him. Oh sure I was mad at him, but that didn't mean I didn't care.

Hell if I didn't care I wouldn't be feeling this messed up in the first place.

I knew that life wasn't very easy for him. It wasn't necessarily hard or a struggle or anything, but I knew he had to work hard to survive and, even more so, to defend what he managed to earn from people who'd be more than willing to just take it from him. More importantly I also knew that unlike us, he had no concrete home where he could go to for safety.

We lived in the sewers of New York, hiding from almost all 6 million people who lived in the city save for 2. We didn't have jobs (although Donny sometimes managed to rake together some cash doing who knows what kind of tech support over the internet) and we didn't make a lot of money, if any at all. What we did make we preciously saved for when we needed to buy food. That was the only thing we ever spent our cash on. Food. Everything else we relied on what people topside discarded and what Donny was able to fix, pull apart or put back together. But despite all this, we still had a home. We had a roof over our heads, or rather we had the street over our heads, we had warm beds, a space we could claim as our own, return to after we had a bad night or needed to hide and a father who always welcomed us home when we came back from whatever ordeal we just went through. Usagi had _none_ of these things. He had his wits and his swords and that was it.

Not that any of that mattered right now. We were blocked off from all those things making us even poorer that our samurai friend. We didn't even know where to go or what to do in this place. But what I _did_ know was that Usagi knew exactly how to survive here and had probably planned his finances and time carefully to survive the winter without going bankrupt. The problem is he only planned for _himself_. Not for 4 teenagers to fall into his lap without even a scrap of clothing to protect themselves from the cold.

He wouldn't abandon us. I knew him and I knew it was physically impossible for him to just turn his back on us. Damn him for it. Not only was he irritating me with how easily he seemed to forget us, but he was also irritating me because I knew the guy will, quite literally, use the last penny he owned to keep the 4 of us out of the cold.

He forgot me. And now he was forgetting himself even easier than that.

After some time the sky went from the greyish white to a darker, murkier blue. Luckily the snow seemed to actually help as it reflected the fading light and kept our journey pretty well lit as long as the sun managed to shine some light down on us, regardless of how faint.

Usagi however seemed concerned by the weather. He kept looking up at the sky every few moments and would frown to himself with a sombre expression. He wasn't trying to hide it from us, but I wish he would just openly say that it was going to snow and stop with the silent pessimism already.

"It's getting cold." Donny said, wrapping his arms around himself.

Raph made a noise at this, agreeing with him. "Any idea how far we have ta go Usagi?"

Usagi made a thoughtful noise. That was pretty much all we managed to get out of him.

Raph pulled a face to himself but didn't ask again, slowing his step so he could walk closer to Don and keep an eye on him.

I turned my own eyes to Mikey, checking the other younger brother to make sure he was ok and wasn't just keeping his mouth shut for fear of slowing us down. It amazed me how Mikey could be the master of annoying us, and yet at the same time was just as skilled at keeping his thoughts to himself. Usually when he actually _needed_ to tell us he wasn't doing so well. However he seemed fine at the moment. He was trotting just behind Usagi, looking around the landscape, probably trying to spot the same yellow light of an inn we saw yesterday when we first got here.

"Ah!" Usagi suddenly said, pulling a hand free from the strange coat he was wearing and pointing ahead of us. "I see a watch tower."

"Where?" Mikey asked eagerly, trotting to stand overly close to him to follow his gaze. "I don't see it."

"There." Usagi said, not pushing him away. "See? You can see its outline against the sky."

"I see it." Raph said, a grin spreading on his face. "Good eyesight Bunny-boy."

"Don't call him that." I said almost automatically before walking to stand on the other side of Usagi, squinting to see where he was pointing. "How long will it take to get there?"

"An hour I think." Usagi said, turning to smile at me warmly.

"What kind of hour?" Donny spoke up, rubbing his arms.

We turned to blink at him. I gave Usagi a glance in case this was something he'd understand better than the rest of us but he looked just as confused.

Don made a small aggravated noise. He wasn't one to lose his temper easily, but I wasn't gonna call him out on it. We were all tired, cold, and feeling very discouraged. He had every right to be a little bad tempered.

He blatantly ignored the rest of us and turned his attention on Usagi, indicating with his hands as he spoke in that overly clear tone of voice he used when he was frustrated with people for not following him as easily as he liked. "Do you mean 60 minutes, or do you mean an hour as in between the Hour of the Cock and the hour of the Dog."

Raph gave a loud groan at this. "Seriously Don? Do we hafta do this field-trip crap right now? What difference does it make?!"

"It makes about an extra _hour's_ difference!" He snapped back. "I wanna be sure we're talking an actual hour here and not two and a half of them!"

Usagi looked back and forth between them. "I'm not entirely sure what you are asking Donatello." He said apologetically. "I meant it would take an hour as in the length of time an hour is. I do not really understand what you mean with your alternative."

"Ok." Donny said, sounding calmer again and rubbing at his face. "So that's the traditional system which means it's maybe a little less than two hours away. That's all I wanted to know."

"Donny... are you ok?" I asked, frowning softly to myself as I watched him.

He nodded, straightening again. "Yeah I'm alright. I'm just worn out and I don't want to gear myself up for an hour's trip only to find out we have to walk for double that time." He gave a sigh, shaking his head slightly. "Whatever, let's just get there ok?"

"I am sorry if I caused any confusion." Usagi said. He seemed to be confused by the conversation himself though.

I shook my head, turning back to the front. "Forget it. Let's just keep going."

We continued our trip. Mikey slowed his step to walk next to Donny where he proceeded to prod him lightly and ask him if he was going nuts on us. Don seemed to have calmed down though and merely shrugged him off. I saw Usagi give the two of them a worried glance before adjusting the coat he was wearing around himself uncomfortably. I didn't need to be a mind-reader to know what he was considering.

I rolled my eyes, turning to him slightly. "Don't bother. We're almost there and I'm sure the 4 of us can hold out till then."

He turned to give me a troubled expression but eventually sighed and gave a nod, turning back to the front, adjusting his coat again guiltily.

In the end Donny had been right. It was at the very least an hour and a half before the town we'd been working towards came into view properly. It didn't look overly big, but seemed to at least be more established than just a small farmer's village. I wasn't really sure if a smaller village would have somewhere we could stay for the night. Seeing the roofs of taller buildings beyond those of the first couple of houses though made me relax. Especially since it was properly dark by the time we wandered into it.

There were still a few people on the street, but not too many. I guess every-one was busy bunking down for the night. Either that or they were preparing supper. I could see a warm glow coming from almost every paper door and cracks in wooden walls we walked past. I could smell smoke from fires warming the simple homes and the people who lived in them. Somehow, I felt a small stab of loneliness at this, wondering if Master Splinter was already getting worried about us or if maybe he thought we were still looking for Usagi.

I gave a sigh. I hoped he wasn't worried yet. I hoped he didn't get the chance to even get worried. I hoped we fixed this problem before he even realised something strange was going on. What on Earth were we gonna do?

"There. That should do." Usagi said, snapping me out of my brooding to indicate a larger building with it's door open and the sound of voices and drinking spilling out from it.

"Finally!" Mikey said, speeding up his walk to a slight trot, turning to grin at the rest of us. "I get first dibs on the beds!"

"Be my guest." Raph said. "As long as there's 5 of 'em I really don't care."

"Let us eat first." Usagi said, giving us a smile. "I could do with a hot meal."

"You and me both." Donny said, returning the smile.

I wanted to say something against it and remind every-one that we were spending some-one else's money, but I couldn't get the words out. My stomach wasn't letting me.

"Yeah." Was all I eventually said.

--------

"Maaan. I could sleep for a week!" Mikey said as we trudged up the stairs to our room, feeing much better after getting some food inside us.

"I hope not!" Usagi laughed. "I do not think my funds could cover that."

"Hey, I'll do it so they won't even know I'm here." Mikey said, turning and bringing his hands up to hide his face from Usagi. "Ninja skills remember?"

"Right." Usagi said, disbelief clear on his face.

"What do we do if it _does_ come ta that though?" Raph asked, sliding the door to our room open as we made our way inside.

"What, if we really do end up staying here a week or so?" Donny asked, looking over his shoulder at Raph as promptly sat himself down on a futon and started pulling the covers open.

"Yeah." Raph said, leaning himself against a wooden beam and crossing his arms.

"I don't think it'll happen." Don said, wrapping the covers around himself.

"And if it does?" Raph frowned at him.

Don said nothing.

"Aw come on guys." Mikey said, plopping down next to Donny. "Do we gotta talk about this now?"

"Ya wanna talk about it when we've made Long-Ears broke and we're freezin' our tails off in the snow?" Raph growled irritably.

"Come on Raph." Donny frowned at him while he absentmindedly threw a corner of his blanket around Mikey so they could share. "We're all tired and stressed out. Do we have to sit here and worry about it now when we're still on edge?"

"No I agree with him." I said, sitting down on a free futon and claiming it as my own. "I dunno if this was just a weird day or what but if we're gonna be stuck here for more than a day or two we have to decide what we're gonna do now. Even if it doesn't come to it we should at least have a plan."

Usagi was undoing his coat, watching me as I spoke while he removed his blue-kimono, keeping the white _juban_ under it on.

"Well, we can't keep doing the 'inn' thing obviously." Donny sighed. "We're gonna have to decide on some other places we can stay at until this mess either clears itself up or we find another way of getting home."

"Another way like what?" Raph asked, cocking a brow at him. "You got a plan Brainiac?"

Donny shook his head. "Not at all."

"Hmmph." Raph sunk against his back-support a little more, obviously disappointed.

"What kind of places would even let us stay without any money?" I asked, frowning to myself but lifting my eyes to Donny, hoping he'd have an answer.

Before he could say anything though Mikey sat up a little straighter, twisting to look at Usagi. "What about you dude? What do you do when money's tight?"

Usagi blinked at him, putting his silk robes next to a futon before sitting down on it. "That depends on where I am and the situation. Normally I move around too much to really stay in one place for the full season."

"Yeah, but you don't just stay at inns right? There's gotta be other places you go to right?" Mikey asked, turning to look at him better, dragging the blanket with him and forcing Donny to shift his position to remain covered.

Usagi gave a nod. "Sometimes I am fortunate enough to find people who are willing to put me up for a couple of days. I try and repay them by helping them in whatever craft they may specialize in, or offering my services as a guard or the use of my sword if the need it. Other times while on the road I will find an abandoned house to spend the night in if I am too far from a town or an inn. If I am very unlucky I will need to spend a night outside and make my own camp, although I do not recommend doing this when it starts getting very cold at night. I try and only risk it once spring is on its way. Otherwise I will sometimes, if they are willing, stay with some friends. Although I dislike doing this as I always feel as if I am imposing."

"Yeah, but the difference is there's only one of ya." Raph pointed out, pushing off the beam and going over to one of the last free futons. "I think the four of us are gonna have a harder time gettin' some-one ta let us all in."

"Unless we split up." I said gravely.

"What?!" Mikey snapped upright in his seat. "No Leo we can't do that! In this weird place with all these weird people and with no idea what we're doing?! We can't split up!!"

"Relax Mikey." Donny said, nudging him.

I gave a breath. "Don't worry Mike. It wouldn't work. And even if we could I don't think we should."

"Dude." Mikey gave me an almost serious frown as he sank back down again. "Don't scare me like that!"

"What about a temple?" Donny said, turning to me.

I blinked at him. "A temple? You mean like a... what? Buddhist?" I turned to blink at Usagi questioningly. He nodded and I turned back to Don. "A Buddhist temple? Won't they tell us to get lost and not sponge off them unless we can donate or something?"

Donny shook his head. "No way. Doesn't exactly fit into the whole Buddhist scheme of things does it? Turning people away who need help. At least," He turned to Usagi too. "That's what I read."

Usagi smiled at him. "If you ask for sanctuary they will give it." He turned to look at our group as a whole. "And if that is an option you are willing to consider, I am actually on very good terms with a priest in charge of a temple who will be more than ready to offer us shelter if we need it."

"Yeah, but how far's he from this neck of the woods?" Raph asked. "Are we gonna have to climb mountains and stuff just ta get to the guy? I don't want us breakin' our necks for a specific place if we could try find one around here instead."

Usagi shook his head quickly. "No not at all! His temple is perhaps 2 or 3 days travel from here. Perhaps a day or so more if the weather is disagreeable. But nevertheless we should be able to reach him without too much trouble. I had passed by him recently on my way East and he and his monks had seemed well prepared for the oncoming weather. I am sure they would not mind if we relied on their hospitality, especially if we explain your situation."

"Awesome!" Mikey said, smiling happily. "He's not gonna make us 'earn our keep' or anything like that though is he?"

"Even if he did," I said loudly, annoyed by Mikey's rudeness. "We'll be very grateful if he could put us up for a few days."

Usagi smiled happily at this, obviously glad that he could help. "His temple is to the west of here. We can set out as soon as the sun is up."

"Sounds like a plan." Raph grinned, stretching his arms over his head and yawning. "But if we're gonna go trekking across the country all day tomorrow I seriously need ta get some sleep."

"No kidding." Donny said, tugging the blanket off of a protesting Mikey and shoving him lightly off the futon and in the direction of his own bed.

"Hey Usagi," Mikey said crawling under the covers. "How come you didn't stay with your buddy yourself if you just saw him?"

"It had not snowed yet." Usagi said simply, nestling down for the night.

-----------

I woke up rather early. I wasn't really sure what the time was exactly, but it felt like early morning to me if that makes any sense. I shifted and was about to roll over and go back to sleep when I realised the reason I'd woken up was because some-one was moving around in the room.

I frowned, turning to see who else was up just in time to see the door sliding closed again as some-one left. I watched the silhouette against the paper wall walk down the corridor, heading for the stairs.

I sat up, my frown deepening as I turned and looked over the futons in the room. Noticing the one that was empty I quickly pulled the blankets off myself and searched around for my mask and belt. I didn't bother with the kneepads and Elbowpads. I'd come back and put those on later.

Once I could call myself 'dressed' for lack of a better word I left the room as quietly as I could, making sure not to wake any-one else up. I slid the door closed before quickly marching down the hallway and taking the stairs two at a time. Once I reached the main room of the inn I wove through the tables, making sure he hadn't just come downstairs for breakfast before I left the building, stepping out into the cold.

I looked around, my breath forming a thick cloud in front of my face. There was new snow on the ground, causing my feet to sink ankle deep into it and dropping my body temperature almost instantly. The air was freezing.

I gave a small shudder but ignored it, spotting the figure walking down the street among the people who had woken up to start their daily routines which seemed to consist, first and foremost, of clearing the newly fallen snow away from around the front of their businesses.

I hurried after him, dodging people as I went.

"Hey! Usagi!" I called, afraid of losing sight of him.

He stopped at this, turning quickly to see who was calling him. He gave me a confused stare, turning and hurrying back over to me, wrapping his kimono tighter around himself against the chill.

"Leonardo, I did not think you were up already." He said once I got close enough.

"I just woke up." I said, frowning at him lightly. "Where're you going?"

He gave me a smile. "I had something I wanted to do before we started our journey, but I did not want to hold you and your brothers up. I will be back shortly. You can have breakfast so long if you want."

I pulled a slight face at this. "No that's ok. I think I'll wait until you actually come back." There was a bit of a bite in my voice and I knew it. I didn't care enough to hide it.

Usagi blinked at me, frowning lightly. "Leonardo, what has gotten into you lately?" He gave me a concerned look, tilting his head gently. "You have been behaving oddly ever since your first night here and I do not fully understand why. Have I done something you disapprove of?"

I made a small grumble of a noise at this. "Just forget it ok?" I turned to go back to the inn. "I'll see you when you get back."

"Are you sure?" He asked. I could hear him crunch through the snow to follow me. "Only, this seems to be weighing heavily on you and I want to help."

I gave a short, irritable breath as I turned back to face him. "Look, if you really wanna know I'm just sick of you running off without telling me anything ok? You did the same junk when you left our home last time and you didn't even bother contacted us. That's all."

I was hoping this was enough to get him to back off but it seemed to do the opposite. He frowned lightly at this but he seemed to be more confused than angry. "Is that what it is? But I do not understand. I did say that I have been trying to prepare for the winter and that there had been no time to try and get word to you on what had happened to me after my involvement with Tomoe and her men. I thought we had discussed this already?"

I shook my head. "No. You gave me an excuse and we haven't said anything about it since then."

His frown deepened slightly. "Leonardo what do you want me to say? I have told you the truth and apologised for making you worry. I do not know what I can do beyond that."

"I don't want you to do anything." I said. I tried to hold back as much as I could, but it all came pouring out. "It's got nothing to do with you _doing_ something about ok? I'm mad because you don't seem to even realise how big of a deal this was for me! You act as if just saying 'Oh I didn't have time to let you know I was fine' will make it all ok! You don't seem to even realise how insane with worry I was, and what's more, I kinda get the impression you don't really care!"

"Now that is going too far!" He said, shooting a finger out at me. "You know very well that I am unhappy to have made you worry, but to be honest I do not understand why you are so upset when it was not that long a period of time!"

"It was _two months!_" I said, getting angry. "Two months of sitting around waiting for nothing! Waiting and waiting and not knowing if you were ok or if you'd lost the fight or if you'd gotten captured or hurt or even killed! For all I knew you had your head blown off the second you left but how would we know?! And you know what's worse? You know what's the icing on the cake? Is that I was holding back! Telling myself it'll all be ok 'cause we were gonna see you at the battle Nexus and you could explain everything in person! But then we _get_ there and you're not there! You didn't even leave a message or a note or anything to even tell us you were ok! You _forgot_ about us!! And what kills me, what really _slays_ me is the fact that _we_ had to come and find _you!!_"

I ran a hand over my head, clenching my teeth angrily before turning back to him, interrupting whatever he had geared himself up to say. "I mean my God Usagi!! What the hell were we suppose to think?! What the hell am I suppose to think _now?!_ For all I know you'd _never_ have contacted us if we didn't come and find you! You were perfectly fine leaving me to just _stew_! Going out of my mind with worry, lying awake at night wondering if I would _ever_ hear _anything_ about what happened to you, and if I did if it was gonna be something one of your _friends_ would have to write because _you_ were no longer around to let me know yourself! You were _so_ worried about freaking Tomoe out when you left us, and yet you don't seem to give a _damn_ about how much _I_ worry!! Do you have _ANY_ idea how that makes me feel?!!"

I went quiet, breathing hard as I glared at him. People had stopped to stare at us but I really didn't care. I kept my eyes on Usagi, waiting to hear what he had to say. I didn't really care enough to listen to what excuse he was going to give me, but I wanted to see if he could say _anything. _If he'd have the gall to try and come up with a valid reason for driving me partially insane with worry.

He was glaring back at me, his eyes narrow and piercing. He was just as angry as I was. I could see it but I really didn't care.

"_Well?!_" I barked when the pause dragged on too long.

He took a deep breath, sucking air through his teeth before he spoke, calmly and softly but with ice hanging from every word. "I have told you, Leonardo-san, that I was preparing for the oncoming winter. You do not seem to realise how hard the cold and snow can be on me and my purse and how much time and effort I need to put into just scraping enough money together to survive. But I understand. I suppose it is easy to forget that some people have to _seek_ shelter and do not have it waiting for them. Or perhaps that sort of thing is not important to you."

He reached up and for the briefest of moments in my anger and frustration I thought he was reaching for his sword hilt. Instead though he took hold of his kimono, pulling it open and reaching inside. He was gripping the silk tighter than he needed to. He pulled out a small folded piece of parchment, maybe the same size as Donny's notebook. His hand shot out towards me as he held it out, glaring at me as if he wanted to burn a hole through my head with his eyes.

"Here. I had been planning on sending it your way as soon as I was able to find myself proper shelter and was sure that I could survive on the budget I had, but obviously things of that nature are not important to you. So heaven forbid me from making you wait any longer."

I kept my eyes on him but snatched the folded piece of paper angrily.

His frown flickered but I was still too worked up to try and figure out why. He turned, moving to walk in the direction he'd been heading before I stopped him.

"Now as I said. I have something I wanted to take care of before we leave. I will return to the inn once I am done, you have my word." His eyes flashed briefly. "But apparently that means very little to you."

I opened my mouth to retort but he turned his back to me before I could think of anything, marching away without giving me a second glance.

I watched him go, still seething with built up anger and disappointment and feelings of betrayal. I felt frustrated and hurt and, for some reason, guilty.

I turned and marched back towards the inn, the folded paper he'd handed me gripped tightly in a fist, my breath coming out in visible puffs.

After a while the anger and frustration died away slowly. But the more they faded the more the feeling of guilt grew, until I felt as if it had a firm grip around my chest and throat. I tightened my grip of the piece of parchment.

**Xxxxx**

_Talking about how traditional Japan used a different way of measuring time was probably unnecessary and pointless, but I just like little bits of trivia like that._


	14. The Letter

_I don't own TMNT or UY_

**Xxxxx**

I thought about going for a walk around town or something to cool down, but I didn't want to wander too far from the others so I settled for going back to the inn. Besides, the cold and snow was really discouraging me from going anywhere. The idea of travelling around in it once we started heading towards Usagi's temple was not helping my mood at all.

This cold, and snow, and not being able to go home and Usagi acting like an idiot and me behaving like a spoiled brat, it was all becoming too much for me. Not enough to make me to want to wash my hands of the whole thing, but enough to seriously get on my nerves and put me in a terrible mood. I hoped the portal sorted itself out so I could just go home, get out of the cold and get away from Usagi until I felt better about him forgetting about us and could talk to him again without wanting to grab his ears and give them a good yank.

I wandered back into the inn, moving to an open table. I sat myself down, crossing my arms over the top of it and glaring at the wood angrily, trying to calm down. The innkeeper trotted over, his hands folded over each other as he bobbed me a greeting, smiling pleasantly although I could tell my behaviour was making him nervous.

"Are you doing well this morning?" He asked. I saw him falter a little as he tried to decide what title would be best to address me by, not knowing if I was a samurai like Usagi or something else.

I was in no mood to try and explain myself right now so I merely gave a nod. "Tea." I muttered.

He gave me another bob and hurried off, seemingly all too happy to get away from my sour attitude.

I sat, glaring angrily at the far wall, trying to sort out my own thoughts and feelings. After a short while the innkeeper's wife came over and served me my tea. I uncrossed my arms to take the cup, realising I was still clutching Usagi's parchment. I frowned at it irritably. I turned it over, inspecting it as I drank from the cup. If anything I was grateful for the warm drink. It made me feel less uncomfortable and frozen and I relaxed slightly.

The parchment was folded on the one side, but the other was left clear for writing, the neat Japanese symbols running down it vertically. I read my name, or rather as close as my name could be written in _hiragana,_ as well as a request for the piece of paper to be delivered to either me, Master Splinter, or any-one else carrying the 'Hamato' name.

I made a noise to myself grumpily as I turned it over and folded it open on the table to read it. I looked over the carefully inked characters running down it. Mad as I was with him, I had to admit Usagi had great calligraphy skills. Not that that was surprising. Calligraphy was something a samurai was required to know. Something to do with dexterity or something I dunno. I was getting pretty good at it, but I could tell Usagi'd been doing it longer. I suppose having Japanese as a first language helped too.

I took a sip from my cup again as I read over it begrudgingly, determined to stay annoyed with him and not let him manipulate me into letting him get away with worrying me as badly as he did.

_To Leonardo and the Hamato clan,_

_I hope you are all in good health and doing well. I must sincerely apologise for the delay on getting word to you on my whereabouts and how I am doing after our last parting. I suppose I should apologise for the parting itself as well. I hope Leonardo has informed you all about my situation at the time and that you will forgive me for my rude departure._

_I understand that you must all have been concerned for me, but I hope that you did not worry too much. The battle against the invaders has been won and we are all fine and well on this side._

He went about explaining the battle itself in more detail but I skipped over it. I'd already heard him give his first hand account in person and really didn't feel like getting the whole story all over again. Besides, it still sounded like nothing but an excuse to me.

I skimmed the paper until I saw where he ended his story.

_After which I bade her farewell and continued my travels once again. At the time of writing this I am moving Eastwards and hope to reach a place where I can spend the winter more comfortably. I would have liked to find a way to spend the winter with Tomoe if I could, but I felt perhaps that would have been awkward._

I frowned at this. I read it again but it still didn't make too much sense to me. I read a little further to see if he explained this rather bizarre sentence but he didn't. He just carried on.

_As it stands, I find myself travelling alone once more._

_I wanted to send word to you to let know that I am well and doing fine. I also wanted to write and thank you for the kindness you had shown me when I came to you in a time of need. If I ever can, I will try and make it up to you, although I know you are not asking for any kind of payment from me. I hope you do not see this as an offensive move on my part as I do not mean to put any kind of transferable value on your kindness towards me. Heaven knows if I try to do that then I would never be able to repay you at all._

_I suppose it might not cross your minds so easily, but for me to have even had your home as an option when I found myself in dire trouble means more to me than you probably understand. I will not cheapen it by trying to explain it properly, nor do I think this is the method in which to talk about such things. But for a drifting man such as myself who has no home and no family and few friends, to have such a solid and reliable beacon of safety is something almost worthy of disbelief. I already have other friends who would welcome me openly into their home, but to be accepted into yet another one, especially one such as warm and kind as your's is more than I deserve. Knowing I can to come to you and that you would welcome me without question, reluctance or second thoughts moves me deeply and warms my heart._

_I thank you all my friends, and I hope you will forgive me my sins for troubling and worrying you._

_Miyamoto Usagi_

I put the parchment down, staring at it quietly.

Eventually I lifted the cup to my lips again but the tea was cold by now. I put it down, reading the carefully placed brush strokes a second time.

I put a hand over my eyes and rubbed at my face as I gave a disheartened sigh. I shook my head slightly.

What the hell is wrong with me?

**Xxxxx**

_._


	15. An Awkward Act of Kindness

_I don't own TMNT or UY_

**Xxxxx**

Leo and Usagi were both gone when I woke up. I was glad. I hoped they were off talking things out so we could get over all this bullshit and focus on the real problem already.

I yawned and stretched. I'd slept pretty good despite all the craziness that was happening. I was hungry though, which I wasn't too happy about. I was gonna have to get something to eat before we left and that meant relying on the rabbit again. I half wondered if those lizard things we spotted on our way over here were edible, and if that would be considered cannibalism if I tried. At least it'd be free.

I searched around for my gear, getting dressed before I nudged Mikey with a foot. "Hey Mikey. Rise and shine, we're hittin' the road today remember?"

He gave a groan and rolled over, trying to hide under the blankets a little more. I grinned to myself as I put my foot against his shell and gave him a hard shove.

Mikey gave a yelp as he rolled off the futon and onto the tatami mat floor. He sprung up, the blanket falling off his shoulders as he glared at me. "Dude what the hell?!"

"Time ta wake up bro. I don' wanna hear ya complainin' about still bein' asleep when we start movin'." I said, giving him a grin.

"You're in a hurry." Donny said as he gave a yawn. "What's the big rush?"

"No rush." I shrugged. "But some-one's gotta get your lazy butts outta bed."

"Great." Mikey mumbled, rubbing his eyes. "So we're getting 'Daddy Raph' today. Awesome."

"The hell's that suppose ta mean?" I growled at him. I'm not sure what the nickname was suppose to be referring to but I knew I wasn't gonna like it.

"Nothing." Mikey said, feeling around for his bandanna which he'd idly dropped somewhere after taking it off. "Just you seem to get into a habit of bossing us around when Leo's not here."

I scoffed at this, rolling my eyes. The truth was I really didn't know what to say about this, and hoped he'd make up his own story as to what I was thinking.

"Hey. Where _is_ Leo?" Donny asked, staring at his empty futon.

"No clue." I shrugged. "But Usagi's missin' too. They probably ran off ta do some buddy buddy stuff before the rest of us woke up."

"D'you think Leo's still mad at him?" Mikey asked, turning to blink at me.

"Leo's mad at him?" Don asked as he strapped on his kneepads. He looked honestly surprised at hearing this.

I shot him a sideways glance. "You serious? Wake up Don! Leo's been givin' the guy the cold shoulder ever since we got here! Ya seriously haven't noticed?"

Donny frowned sheepishly at this. "Not really no. I've kinda been preoccupied with checking this place out and taking notes."

I made a noise to myself. "Yer so busy takin' notes about what's around us yer not seein' what's goin' on right in front of ya Don."

Donny pulled a face at me angrily, but he looked slightly ashamed of himself.

"Well I dunno about you guys," Mikey said, strolling to the door, his hands crossed behind his head. "But I'm gonna get a bite to eat before they come back. I'm starving."

"Yeah." I said, turning to follow him as my stomach was instantly reminded that it was empty. "Food sounds good."

"Shouldn't we ask before we spend more of Usagi's money?" Don asked, following behind us as he tied his bandanna.

"He won't mind." I said. I knew this was true, but what I didn't say was that starting a trip without getting anything to eat was a really dumb idea anyway and Usagi would have to pay for our food no matter what.

We climbed down the stairs into the main room of the inn where the tables were and where the food was served. I spotted the back of Leo's shell. He was sitting by himself, facing the door. He had his hands folded together under his chin and was staring off into space with a soft frown on his face. I blinked at him before I gave a long exhale. I didn't like the looks of that.

"Hey Leo!" Mikey said happily, trotting over to him.

Leo blinked, waking up from his daydream and turning to us. Mikey smiled warmly as he took a seat opposite him. Me and Don walked over and joined them.

"You're up early!" Mikey said, grinning at him. "We thought you were with Usagi."

"Yeah." Leo said thoughtfully. "Yeah I was."

"So where is he?" I asked, making sure to keep my voice neutral.

"He said he had something to do before we left and we should have breakfast while he's out." Leo said, rubbing at his forehead for a moment before sitting up a little straighter.

"Works for me!" Mikey said, looking around to try and spot the innkeeper.

"Me too." Don said, looking happier with the idea at hearing Usagi say it was ok.

"Did he say what he was doin'?" I asked, still focusing on Leo.

He shook his head, turning to stare absentmindedly through the open door. "No."

I frowned to myself. Something was obviously up but I let it go for now.

The innkeeper came over and we got ourselves some breakfast. Not the fanciest or biggest breakfast in the world but at least it was food. Besides, Rice can fill you up more than you'd think. We didn't get anything to drink though. We figured we could get some water on the road or something if we really needed to. No reason to spend Usagi's penny more than we needed.

After we were done we stuck around, waiting for the rabbit to get back. Don was busy paging through his little notebook again and trying to show Mikey some of the notes he'd taken on our trip. Mikey seemed much happier with pointing out the silliness in Don's sketches. Donny didn't seem to appreciate this much though and put his notebook away again, giving Mikey an irritated frown, but I could see his cheeks flush slightly in embarrassment.

Leo wasn't saying much, but every few moments I saw him give the doorway a glance. He seemed to have gone from being pissy to being depressed and frankly, I dunno which annoyed me more. If I had to pick though I'd choose pissy. At least with depressed Leo you could try talking to him and he'd eventually open up without flipping his shit. The trick was just getting him away from the others so you could have a one on one with him. And Leo was good at avoiding situations like that when he didn't want to talk.

A while later Usagi came back, carrying a tied bundle under his arm. He noticed the 4 of us and came over, although Mikey decided it was necessary to wave at him anyway in case he didn't see us with the crowd of 5 other people in the room.

Usagi came over and sat down. "_Ohayo._"

"Morning!" Mikey said eagerly before leaning forward in his seat a little to try and get a better look at Usagi's bundle which he'd put on the bench beside him. "Whatcha got there?"

"I will show you later." Usagi said. I was paying close attention to him, trying to see if I could figure out his mood and compare it to Leo's. "Have you eaten yet?"

"Yep." Donny said, giving him a grateful smile. "We didn't go too wild on you don't worry. Have you gotten anything?"

"Not as of yet no." Usagi said. "I hope you do not mind if I eat before we leave."

"No worries dude." Mikey said. "We can't have the tour guide falling over from starvation right? That'd kinda suck."

"Mikey, he's not just a 'tour guide'." Donny sighed, giving Mikey an impatient frown before turning back to Usagi. "I hope you know we appreciate what you're doing more than that."

Usagi gave a slight laugh at this. "Do not worry, I have come to understand how to interpret Mikey-kun's remarks."

"I'm gonna grab the rest of my gear in the meantime then." Leo said, getting up.

I cocked a brow at him. "'Rest of your gear'? Wha?"

He tapped one of his bare elbows in response before walking towards the stairs again. I watched him go. So did Usagi.

"So are you gonna tell us what your bundle is _now_?" Mikey asked hopefully.

"Will ya let the guy eat first? Geez!" I said, turning back to the group at the table.

Usagi got himself some food as Donny went about trying to tell us why temples are so incredibly awesome and that their architecture deserves our utmost respect and worship. I half-listened, watching him with a bored expression. I threw Mikey a quick glance, actually hoping he'd have a dumb-ass comment so we could change the subject but he was distracted, trying to catch glimpses of Usagi's bundle as if looking at it from a different angle might let him know what it was. Usagi himself was silent, staying rather detached from the conversation. He was focusing on his bowl of rice and seemed almost oblivious to the fact that the rest of us were there.

I focused on him a little more while still keeping half an ear on Don's ramblings so he wouldn't notice what I was actually paying attention to. Usagi didn't notice either, but even if I was staring him dead in the face I was pretty sure he wouldn't have seen me. He was staring down into his bowl as he worked his chopsticks. He seemed almost sad. Not exactly like he was _feeling_ sad, but he just struck me as a sad figure of a guy sitting like that, eating a small meal as if completely alone, not making eye contact with any-one, letting the conversation wash over him and keeping himself to himself. I felt myself frown sympathetically. Something was definitely up.

"Hey. Are you even listening?" Donny asked, sounding a little irritated that I wasn't busting a gasket over flying buttresses or something.

"Mm hmm. Yeah that's great Don." I said, getting up. "I'm gonna go see what's takin' Leo so long."

"Dude no! Don't leave me alone with Dictionary Britannica Over here!" Mikey said melodramatically, making grabby motions towards me.

"You're on yer own Mike." I said, giving him a grin before I turned in the direction of the stairs, taking them to the second floor and walking to our room.

I didn't bother knocking, sliding the paper door open and walking inside. Leo's head snapped up but he calmed down when he saw it was just me. I closed the door behind myself again.

"You alright?"

"Yeah." He said, picking up a blanket and turning it over in his hands with a frown before taking two corners and shaking it out.

"Ya seemed kinda zonked out downstairs." I said carefully.

He arched a brow at me. "'Zonked'?"

I gave a shrug. "Hey, you got a better word for it be my guest."

He dropped the blanket in a heap on a futon. "I just have a lot on my mind."

"So does Usagi apparently." I said, keeping my eyes on him.

Leo turned to me at this. "Did he say something?"

I shook my head. "Nah. He's just eatin' like he was the only person in the room. He's zonin' worse than you were." I frowned at this. "Did somethin' happen Leo?"

"Yeah." Leo said, picking up a different blanket. "Yeah something happened."

I watched him as he shook the second blanket. He was glaring at it half-heartedly as he did so before he dropped it again, grumbling to himself.

"D'you wanna talk about it?" I asked eventually.

Leo sighed, picking up a pillow. "Not really, no."

"_Will_ you talk about it?" I said, a little more pointedly.

Leo thought about this for a few moments before he nodded. "Yeah." He turned to me again. "But I'll talk to _him_ about it when I do."

I made a soft noise at this. "And it'll be ok? Ya won't kill each other or anythin'?"

Leo nodded, putting the pillow down. "We won't kill each other."

I gave a nod, satisfied. If Leo could say they'd sort it out I trusted him. Leo knelt down and took hold of the side of a futon, lifting it slightly and looking around under it. I frowned at him, coming closer.

"The hell are you doin'?"

He gave an aggravated breath, dropping the futon again. "I can't find my other kneepad."

I snorted. "I though you were suppose ta be the responsible one."

"Yeah well, today just doesn't seem to be my day." He grumbled.

"Don't say that man. The day ain't even started yet." I said, picking up one of the other blankets to help.

"Swell." Leo said.

It took a bit of searching but eventually we found the missing kneepad and Leo tied it on, completing his get-up before strapping his swords to his shell. We were about to leave and get back to the others when the door slid open and Mikey trotted inside eagerly, followed closely by Usagi and Donny.

"What's going on?" Leo asked, watching Mikey with a confused expression.

"Usagi's gonna show us what he got!" Mikey said happily, hurrying over to sit down on a futon as if it were a spectator's seat.

"And you had to do it upstairs?" I asked, watching the rabbit walk over and sit himself down, putting the bundle on the floor in front of himself and undoing the strap it was tied with.

"I don't think letting other people see us handling something new and shiny out in the open is a great idea Raph." Donny said, sitting down as well.

Usagi gave a chuckle. "It is not shiny and I do not think any-one would really care for it. However I felt that it would be best to hand these over in private."

"Hand what over?" Leo asked. It was the first time he'd said anything to the rabbit directly since he came back.

"Here." Usagi motioned, pulling out a long sheet of silk cloth and handing it towards Mikey who looked like he was ready to grab the bundle and run off with it if Usagi didn't hurry up and show us what he was up to.

Mikey reached out eagerly, taking the silk and looking it over with wide but confused eyes. He turned it over and over in his hands, trying to figure it out as if it were a rubik's cube or something. "What is it?"

"It is so that you do not freeze while we are travelling." Usagi said, giving him a grin before handing a similar item to Donny.

"Aw no way." Donny said almost remorsefully. "Usagi please tell me you're kidding."

Usagi turned, handing me one too before he turned to Leo, handing him a folded sheet of silk as well. "I will not let you freeze." He answered Donny, but he was looking at Leo.

Leo said nothing, avoiding his eye but taking the silk clothing carefully.

Usagi said nothing to him, turning back to the rest of us, smiling again happily. "Once we are all set we should start our journey before any heavy snowfall comes our way."

"Yeah but..." Donny said, chewing on his bottom lip as he finger the material carefully.

Usagi rolled his eyes. "If it makes you feel better I will have you repay me _after_ you return home safely. But for now let us not waste time going back and forth feeling guilty about it."

"Right on!" Mikey agreed happily, already sticking his arms through the sleeves. "You can bill me for all I care! That snow out there ain't no picnic!"

"Indeed." Usagi said.

Mikey was perfectly happy getting himself wrapped up but the rest of us still seemed unsure about this. I mean don't get me wrong, the guy deserves a damn medal for this, but for some reason I felt weird about it. I wasn't too happy about being mommied. However I shrugged lightly to myself. Then again, there was no denying how bone-chillingly cold it was outside and frankly, I was sick of the weather kicking my ass. We were lucky yesterday with the sun but knowing how much luck tended to think of us I wasn't gonna risk it again. I mean running around outside for 3 or 4 days in a row and just _hope_ it was gonna be sunny and warm when winter was most definitely here? Yeah. Great plan. I like that.

I broke the awkward silence, slipping the kimono on and getting myself properly dressed, wrapping it tightly. "Ain't exactly my colour is it?"

"That's a very Mikey thing to say." Donny said much to my horror.

"No way!" Mikey said, already parading around and hoping some-one would comment on his new duds. "You know I look awesome in anything! No way you could bring down _these_ good looks!" He then proceeded to pull off some overly dramatic poses.

I couldn't resist, throwing out a foot and tripping him up when he came too close, causing him to smash into the pile of blankets and pillows Leo and I'd made before knocking over the small sword stand.

"Watch it you two!" Leo frowned at us as he tied what was now his second belt.. "This isn't the lair. You hit one of these walls you'll tear right through them."

"Ya heard 'im Mike. Ya break it you buy it!" I said, giving him a sneer.

"You mean _I_ buy it." Usagi sighed.

"Right." I said, my grin widening at Mikey.

"By the way." Donny said. "Thanks Usagi."

---------

The clothes made a world of difference. You wouldn't think they could, not being the thickest jackets in the world or anything but they did. For the first time stepping out of a building didn't feel like getting bitch-slapped across the room. I was worried my sai might cut the new belt by accident but it seemed to hold them good enough. I hoped it would stay that way so I wouldn't accidentally get pantsed on the way to this temple or whatever.

I fingered a sleeve as we walked, hoping the others wouldn't notice me and pay attention to the road or the town or something. I didn't wanna seem like a complete girl, fussing over a shirt, but what can you do? It's new and it's weird feeling.

The kimono itself was a navy blue which I didn't really get, but I wasn't gonna argue fashion with the rabbit. Once I got tired of being a guy and wanted Mikey to brand me a chick for life I'd start asking about crap like that. The _hakama_ were black. Nothing more to say there.

Then again I guess if he'd handed me a clown suit and a rainbow fro I'd have put it on without wining about it. Anything if it meant not catching pneumonia. Then _again_ if he handed me a clown suit and a rainbow fro I'd probably have to wrestle them away from Mikey first. You just know he'd swipe those and use them as deadly weapons in some or other prank later on down the road.

I checked the others as we walked through the town, filing away the new outfits in my head so if trouble showed up I didn't have to struggle trying to recognize them in the unfamiliar get-ups.

Mikey in cream and brown, busy strutting as if he'd just bought the whole town. The town was ignoring him however but he didn't seem to care. Donny in black and dark bluey-purple-whatever colour pants. He was geeking out as hard as ever although I noticed he was keeping his little school-project notebook to himself at the moment. He had his bo tucked into the back of his belt just as always although I was pretty sure you weren't suppose to carry it like that. Then again I understood why. You can't jump around and throw a proper punch with a stick in your hands.

Leo in grey. He was still quiet but was keeping step with Usagi. Neither of them were saying anything to each other. I was glad to see Leo had stopped acting like a jerk to Usagi though. Sure he was being gloomy and bumming the rest of us out, but at least he didn't seem mad at him any more. The last thing we needed with this whole mess was to have Leo and Usagi at each other's throats.

So having Leo not be ticked off helped with the level of stress. Too bad Usagi seemed to be ignoring him, acting as if the guy was hardly there. Forget the snow! Usagi's cold shoulder was enough to cause frostbite! I just hoped they sorted their issues out before we went home again. I was not in the mood to have to listen to Leo whine for another 2 months about how he and Usagi were acting like morons towards each other. No problem though. If they didn't sort it out themselves I'd just crack their heads together for them.

We left the village or town or whatever it was and started our trip down the road again, heading back the way we'd first come much to my annoyance. However Usagi said since we had a clear set goal now he could get us where we were going faster. I wasn't gonna question the guy. He'd been right so far.

It was overcast today, but not as bad as when we first got here. For one we could actually tell it was day. Usagi seemed to be keeping us on a pretty straightforward road. No weird turns into forests or mountain passes or anything like that. Good thing too, because around noon it started to snow. It was coming down lightly, but it made it harder to see ahead of us.

The snowflakes felt cold as they touched the top of my head, melting and running down the back of my neck. I gave a small shudder and adjusted the new material a little tighter around myself.

You know what? Navy was fine.

**Xxxxx**

_Hakama – pants/trousers_


	16. The Temple

_**Important notice: **Tomorrow I fly back to South Africa. The trip itself takes 3 days after which I need some time to recuperate from jet-lag and get decent internet running on my computer. Because of this there's gonna be a short hiatus on this fic until I'm able to upload the next part. However don't be worried. The fic will continue as soon as I'm settled again and the next chapter has already been written. I want to give my sincere thanks to every-one who's been reading it thus far and especially to those who have left me feedback. You're the sole reason I keep writing this fic. I'm sorry it's moving at a slow pace, but things pick up after this chapter. I hope you find it enjoyable so far regardless._

_I don't own TMNT or UY._

**Xxxxx**

There was definitely a problem. Every day when we woke up the first thing we'd do after getting something to eat was find a secluded area and try to open a portal, either to get straight back home or to the battle Nexus. We might as well have been writing limericks and it would've been just as productive. I was seriously starting to wonder if we were making a mistake with our symbols. I kicked myself for not thinking of writing them down in my notebook. Oh I remembered all the fancy dates that would probably never come up in conversation and I remember the map which was now completely pointless, but of course I'd forgotten to write down the symbols essential to getting us home! Brilliant.

A very small part of me wondered perhaps if Leo was messing up the incantation. I really didn't believe it but when you're stuck and you have no idea what to do, your brain starts coming up with any reason it could for what was wrong, regardless of how ridiculous it was. Deep down however, I knew Leo wasn't making any mistakes. There was some part of me that wanted to urge him to try a different mantra or something, but I kept a tight lid on it. This wasn't Leo's fault and there was nothing he could do to fix this. Besides, we'd already asked Usagi to say the mantra just to be sure and he was just successful as Leo.

So if it wasn't Leo, and we were pretty sure it wasn't our writing, and we kept trying different locations and at different times of day... what was wrong? Why can't we go home? My brain felt like it was ready to split itself in two as I tried to figure it out. However I couldn't come up with any explanation that sounded believable.

What was worse was that I had this giant urge to sit down and try come up with an alternative way to get home. I wasn't sure what I was thinking exactly, but I felt if I could just sit down with a pen and paper and some decent reference books on time and space I could maybe come up with _something_. But of course there was no way for me to do this while we were here. This really frustrated me, perhaps even more so than the fact that I had no theories on what was happening. If we had no idea why we were stuck here, fine. I can handle that. But at least give me a way to try and figure out _why_. I'm not sure if having the resources to do some proper research would help at all, but simply not having that option made me feel as if I could figure it out if only I had the right tools available to me! I can't get it across clearly enough how frustrating this was for me.

Luckily there was enough to distract me during our trip to this temple Usagi had mentioned. We'd been travelling for roughly 3 days or so by now, and I mean hard travelling. We were taking in the sights and sounds as we went, or at least I was, but there was no question about the fact that we were trying to make our way to the temple as fast as we could without wearing ourselves out completely. That didn't leave much time for scientific observation, but I still managed to try and log away any interesting thing I saw or heard or found as we went.

The weather had been more or less mild so far. When we first left the town it had started to snow, but it was light and didn't get that much heavier. This had carried on for most of the day but by evening it'd cleared up again. We'd managed to find an inn along the road and once again relied on Usagi to pay for us for the night. The next day was heavily overcast but we didn't get any proper snowfall until late afternoon and by then we were already close to a small village which, fortunately, had an inn where we could wait the weather out. The day after that had been clear, but there was a very cold wind which made it kinda unpleasant.

To make matters worse it was the first day where we hadn't come across any kind of inn or town by the time night started to roll around. For a while it looked like we were gonna have to risk the outdoors for the night. Either that or just boycott sleeping completely and keep going until we found some proper shelter. The main concern was that it would snow again, and if that happened we'd have to find whatever shelter we could no matter what, even if it wasn't good enough to sleep in. However, it seems luck was on our side because as the sun set and we started travelling in the dark we ran across a river of some sorts and one of us, I've forgotten who, spotted a small, dilapidated shack next to it. It looked like it'd been abandoned a long time ago and was partially falling apart on one side but we were in no position to complain.

The house had apparently belonged to a fisherman or something at one stage. There appeared to be the wreckage of a drying rack next to it but it had long ago fallen apart. The inside of the house was drafty and cold, but it kept out the snow and with some effort Usagi and Raph managed to get the fire-pit going. The warmth made an instant difference and we were all a lot more sold on the idea of spending the night there.

That is until Usagi mentioned that he hoped the cold had killed any spiders that might've made their home in the wrecked house since he hated waking up with a bug on his face.

Raph had volunteered to stand watch for the night. Claiming he wasn't tired.

It did snow that night, but so lightly it's not even worth mentioning really. Probably just as well. If there had been a proper blizzard I was sure the entire building would've collapsed in on itself, crushing us. However we managed to luck out yet again and as soon as it was light we hit the road again.

Raph was in a bad mood due to the lack of sleep but apart from grumbling to himself no fights broke out between us and Mikey was smart enough to read the signs and leave him alone. This was a very good thing because I was sure our stress levels were so high that any one of us would snap at any second if something went wrong. And my money was on it being either Leo or Usagi.

Ever since Raph had told me Leo was mad at Usagi I'd been keeping a closer eye on the two of them, trying to figure out what was wrong. I was also keeping a closer eye on them because I felt a little ashamed that I hadn't noticed something was wrong on my own and had to be told. I mean I understood why I'd missed it but at the same time that wasn't really an excuse either. I should know what's going on with my own family.

However, I think Raph was misreading things because Leo didn't seem to be angry at Usagi at all. If anything it was the other way around. Usagi seemed annoyed with Leo. He and Leo were talking alright and they weren't being snippy to each other, but at the same time Usagi had suddenly started addressing Leo with this overly polite tone of voice. This may not sound like such a big deal, but being able to relax around each other, drop our guards and not have to keep what we say and how we say it in check is kind of how our little group held itself together. Poking fun at each other and knowing no-one will be offended is just a natural part of being friends. Usagi behaving so clinically polite to Leo was a major beacon that something wasn't right between them.

Leo wasn't really doing anything to egg Usagi on either. He seemed to be stuck in that awkward place where every time he and Usagi said anything to each other, Leo would be kind and considerate, but at the same time would try and minimize how much he and Usagi talked despite the fact that he obviously had a lot to say. He seemed to be waiting for Usagi to forgive him for whatever it is he might've done. Usagi did seem to slowly be calming down and talking to him more openly as we travelled, but he still seemed angry about something. I was worried. If they didn't fix things between them one of us would have to do something and act as a mediator or something because this wasn't healthy, and I could see Leo, the responsible, caring older brother, was really unhappy about how this was going.

I decided to let it go until we reached the temple though. This was no time to try and mend broken bridges when we were still focusing on not freezing to death. I had been uneasy about Usagi spending his own money on clothes for us, but after travelling around the countryside for 3 days I've kinda warmed up to the idea. There was no earthly way we would've been able to make this trip if we were still wearing just our ninja gear. That night in the fishing shack would've probably ended up being a very big problem if we hadn't been wrapped up properly.

I noticed that the snow on the landscape kept getting deeper. Even when the sun was out it was too cold for it to melt and it just kept building up on itself. There was a moment while we were walking when we noticed a large group of the strange lizard creatures that seemed to be the local wildlife streak across the path a good distance ahead of us. Usagi seemed troubled by this for some reason and told us to keep our weapon within quick reach. Nothing happened though and he relaxed a short while afterwards. When we asked him what was wrong he mentioned that the animals could become aggressive during winter and we should try and stay away from them if we could. There were more and more reasons for us to be anxious to just get where we were going already.

For this reason I was very relieved when Usagi turned off the road and started travelling through the trees of the forest we were walking through, claiming that we were getting close and we might as well take a short cut.

Travelling through the forest was both easier and harder than travelling out in the open. On the one hand the snow was not as thick or deep, but on the other hand the ground was very uneven. I suppose that means that in the end it was pretty much the same as walking across an open area, but I wasn't sure whether to drop my guard a little or put it on higher alert. In the end though I didn't really need to do either because it couldn't have been more than an hour or two before I spotted a solid, man-made structure in front of us.

At first I thought it was another abandoned house or something, but once we cleared the trees a little more I realised it was much too big to be a house or even an inn. First and foremost, there was a very tall wall that ran in both directions. It had to be at least 8 or 9 feet tall. If I craned my neck I could see the points and slopes of some roofs on the other side of it, although I couldn't make out their colour thanks to the blanket of snow covering them. But the thing directly in front of us is what really grabbed my attention.

The wall was broken up by a rather large staircase, made out of stone rather than wood like the other structures we'd seen so far. Towering over it was what I could only really call a 'gate'. It had a large, very solid looking frame with two doors set firmly in the middle of it. It was made of sturdy slabs of dark wood that looked like they could survive a bomb blast. There was a high sloping roof over the entrance. I could see the edges of the tile underneath the thick layer of snow.

I'll be honest, when I'd heard 'temple' I had a much more welcoming building in mind. I was picturing an open area with perhaps a small courtyard or a zen garden or something similar. Maybe I was relying too much on stereotype, but I really hadn't been expecting something that looked like it was expecting an invasion at any moment. I mean sure, I guess I thought a Buddhist compound would maybe have a small wall and a front gate just to keep it separate from the outdoors, but I wasn't expecting a castle wall! It was more than a little intimidating.

Usagi however, broke out into a wide smile when we reached it, turning to the rest of us happily. "See? I said I could get us here safely!"

"Yeah yeah, good job Long-Ears." Raph said, pulling a face to himself.

"You sure your friend won't mind us staying here till we figure out how to get home?" Leo asked, staring up at the large front gate. He seemed to be getting the same impression from it that I was.

"Not at all." Usagi said. I noticed he actually gave Leo a smile. I was relieved. I hoped getting here would improve his mood enough to warm up to my older brother again.

"So do we just walk up and knock?" Mikey said, turning to Usagi. He seemed the least worried by how intimidating the place looked, save for Raph who seemed to be indifferent to it.

"Why not?" Usagi said climbing the stairs. "But I think perhaps it would be best if I was the one to do so."

"You're friend not keen on visitors?" Raph asked, crossing his arms and looking the wall over with a frown. So he _did_ notice.

All this was lost on Usagi though. "No, I just think it would be rude otherwise."

He climbed the stairs carefully, making sure not to slip on the snow before he walked up to the large front doors and gave them a rather impressive pounding. The rest of us kinda gathered around the foot of the stairs, unsure whether we should follow him or not. I bit my lip as I looked over at my brothers, suddenly realising how many of us there were and becoming nervous if this friend of Usagi's might turn us away. After all, if Gen was any indication on what kind of friends Usagi tended to have we were pretty screwed.

Leo broke away from the rest of us after a few minutes and climbed the stairs after Usagi, standing next to him.

"Ho! Is any-one there?! It's Usagi!" Usagi called, looking upwards along the wall. I wondered if there was something like guard walks along it on the inside of it or something. Judging by the looks of this place I wouldn't be surprised if there were.

"Think He'll hear us?" Leo asked.

"_Some-one_ will hear us." Usagi said. "Hello?! Is any-one home?!"

He and Leo both went silent and I wondered if they'd heard something the rest of us couldn't. That might've been the case because a few moments later there was the sound of something heavy being moved on the other side of the doors before one of them opened. I was relieved to see whoever was on the other side opened the door widely and without hesitation. Maybe the people here weren't as stand-offish as their wall suggested.

A young man appeared in the doorway. I was having a hard time pinning some of the people in Usagi's world's exact er... 'species' as it were. It seems not every-one was as blatantly a rabbit like Usagi was. Some were obviously dogs or cats or rhinos, but a lot of them, and I do mean a _lot_ of them were much harder to figure out. The man at the door was one of these kinds of people. He was yellowish in colour and had shorter, pointed ears but beyond that I had no idea. He blinked at Usagi before breaking into a very wide smile much to my relief.

"Usagi-san! This is a surprise! We didn't think we'd see you until the summer!" He said warmly.

Usagi gave a laugh at this. "Some things have sprung up to change my plans it seems. Nevertheless it is good to see you Senzo-san."

"'Some things.'" The man called Senzo repeated, blinking. "You're not in trouble are you?"

"Not exactly." Usagi said, giving an apologetic grin. "But I am afraid I will need to ask a favour of you. Is Priest Sanshobo free to speak to me for a moment?"

"He's still busy with his daily duties, but you're welcome to come inside and wait for him Usagi-san. I'll let him know you're here right away!" Senzo said enthusiastically. I felt myself grin. Apparently Usagi was quite popular.

"_Ano..._ just one more thing." Usagi 'uhm-ed' sheepishly. "I have some friends with me. They are good people and I trust them whole-heartedly. I hope you do not mind if they accompany me."

"No no of course not." Senzo said, almost ignoring the question. "Come, I will show you to somewhere where you can warm up and get out of this ghastly cold."

"Our thanks." Usagi said, turning to the rest of us and motioning for us to follow him.

Mikey was right on his heels as soon as he saw everything was ok. Raph followed closely behind him like a guard dog, ready to stop Mikey from doing anything idiotic. I brought up the rear, still looking the gate over a little nervously.

The other side of the wall was much better than the rather imposing gate though. Inside it looked a lot more welcoming. There was a large main building in the middle of the compound with some smaller buildings flanking it on each side but none of them looked like they were built to keep people out. I spotted something that was probably a garden in the summer moths as well as what looked to me like a well. The courtyard had been swept free of snow, or at least as much as was possible, and there was the warm glow of lamps shining through the paper walls. I wasn't sure if I was just imagining it or not, but I thought I could here the calm sound of a large bell being rung rather idly somewhere, probably more by the wind than by an actual person.

I spotted one or two other people wandering around the compound, but was rather surprised by how empty it looked. At least considering its size. Then again, maybe every-one was indoors due to the weather or something. The few people I did see were all men and were obviously either monks or acolytes. They all wore the same black robe the man named Senzo had on and all seemed to be on the younger side, maybe around our age. If anything that was a good sign. It meant they'd probably be more understanding of me and my 3 brothers, being the rather rowdy bunch that we are.

Senzo led us inside one of the buildings, walking down a hallway before stopping next to one of the paper walls and sliding it open, revealing a nicely sized room with warm lamps burning inside it. Usagi thanked him as we entered.

"I will let Priest Sanshobo know you are here." Senzo said, giving us all a smile before closing the wall again. I watched his silhouette walk back down the corridor through the paper wall.

"Pretty impressive." Raph said, sitting himself down on a random spot on the floor. "Ya got yourself some pretty interestin' friends Bunny-Boy."

"Don't call him that." Leo said, sitting down as well.

"So is this Sensen guy your buddy?" Mikey asked, grinning at Usagi.

Usagi laughed. "That is Senzo, and although he is a friend no, that is not the person I was referring to. We must wait for Priest Sanshobo and ask him if we can stay here until you are able to get home."

Leo frowned at something Usagi said, but kept silent.

"So who's this Sanshobo guy anyway?" Raph said.

"He is the head priest of this temple." Usagi said. "And this temple is the head temple of this area of the province. In other words, please try and not get on his bad side."

"Who us? No way!" Mikey said happily. "You forget who you're talking to Usagi! Every-one loves us!"

"Right." Raph snorted.

"I think Usagi knows _exactly_ who he's talking to Mikey." I said, giving him a pointed look.

"Aw alright, so Raph can get on people's nerves a little." Mikey said.

"Me?! Hey wait a minute!!" Raph snapped, sitting upright. "Ya do know we're talkin' about _you_ doncha?!"

"Hah! Yeah right!" Mikey said. "Face it Raph! You're the biggest trouble maker here!"

"You're the one who's always gettin' on people's nerves!" Raph shot back, pointing a finger at him.

"Maybe, but _you're_ the one whose always getting into fights!" Mikey retorted, grinning widely.

"Well maybe if some people just learned how ta keep their traps shut I wouldn't have anythin' ta fight about!" Raph yelled angrily.

Usagi groaned, putting his face in his hands.

"Does your friend have a lot of patience?" I asked him with a sigh.

"Everybody has their limit Donatello-san." He mumbled somewhere between his fingers.

"Knock it off you guys." Leo said with a serious tone of voice.

"Aw come on Leo, we're just kidding." Mikey grinned at him.

"No I mean it." Leo frowned at him. "I don't want to hear anything from either of you until we've got this all sorted out. Understood?"

Raph made an irritable noise, crossing his arms. "Ya mean till after we trick the poor bastard into putting us up for a while. Got it."

Leo's eyes narrowed slightly at this but he said nothing.

"We didn't have a plan B by any chance did we?" I asked, giving our Samurai friend a sideways glance.

He merely stared back at me hopelessly, his chin resting in one of his hands.

We were so busy going back and forth that we didn't heard the approaching footsteps. When the paper wall was slid open we nearly jumped out of our shells in surprise.

Senzo was at the door, but it seems he was only there to open it for the person following behind him. Usagi didn't even need to introduce him. It was dead clear that this was a guy who was in charge. Perhaps in charge of a temple would not have been my first guess if I'd seen him walking down the street I'd bet money on him being in charge of _something_.

He was taller than any of us and had a fairly muscular build. He was wearing the same humble black robe as all the other people I'd seen, but somehow on him it looked more like a uniform than just a monk's robe. He had a very purposeful stride and a hard-set, lined face. He was yet another person who was more indiscriminate as far as species went. He was ochre in colour and had smaller, triangular ears. He looked to be in his 50s or so if I had to guess but I really couldn't be sure. It was one of those faces where you can't really tell what age he was because it was very possible he was much younger and had just seen a lot of hard times, or he might in fact have been much older but was just too stubborn to age. He reminded me almost of a drill sergeant, and that made me kinda nervous.

However, when he walked into the room he broke into a wide grin.

"We just can't get rid of you can we Usagi-san?!" He said good-naturedly before turning to Senzo who was still hovering at the door and ordering him to bring some tea.

Usagi gave a laugh. "I must admit, I had not planned to return to your temple this soon Sanshobo-san."

"Yes, I thought you said you were heading east to escape the weather." The man said. "Did the early snow change your mind?"

"Yes and no." Usagi said. "but here, I should introduce my friends before I explain what has happened."

He turned to the rest of us and I automatically got to my feet. I realised I'd been wringing my hands and stopped, baling them into fists to prevent the nervous habit as I faced the man with what I hoped looked like confidence.

"This is Hamato Leonardo and his 3 brothers; Raphael, Michelangelo and Donatello. They are good friends of mine from very far away." He turned to us. "This is Priest Sanshobo. A close friend and comrade who I have known for a while now."

We greeted the man uncertainly, and only after I spotted Leo doing so did I remember to give him a small bob in greeting.

"Any friend of Usagi's is welcome in these walls." Sanshobo said. He turned back to Usagi. "But I take it the reason you're here has more to do with the snow outside than anything else."

"I am afraid so." Usagi said. "Sanshobo-san, I know it is not my place to ask such a burden from you, but my friends have travelled here through very unorthodox means, not knowing it would be so cold when they arrived as they did not plan to stay long. However, we have been trying for several days now and they have been unable to return home and I do not have the funds to feed and shelter them for much longer."

I felt a stab of guilt at this but said nothing, watching the head priest's face, trying to figure out how he felt about all this and whether he was the type of guy who would sympathise with us. However, I couldn't tell anything. They guy had a very good poker face.

"I was hoping I could impose on you once again and ask if you would grant us sanctuary at your temple until we are able to find a way for them to return home." Usagi said, giving the man a deep bow at this. "I know I ask too much, but I could not think of anywhere else to go. _Onegaishimasu._"

Sanshobo gave a deep sigh and shook his head, making a motion with his hand for Usagi to stand up straight. "There's no need for all of that. You know very well our doors are always open to you Usagi-san, and that invitation extends to your friends. And even if it didn't, I would not turn away some-one in need. Much less a group of kids in the snow."

I instantly felt blood shoot to my face irritably at this. 'kids'?! I _beg_ your pardon?! We weren't little kids! We might not be 'adults' if you really wanna get technical but there was no way we were just 'kids'! I bit down hard on my tongue though, stopping myself from saying anything and hoping my flushed cheeks wouldn't give away how insulted I felt.

"Thank you Sanshobo-san." Leo said, giving the man a bob.

"Yeah, you're really savin' our tails for us." Raph said with a grateful smile.

"If there's anything we can do to help out around here we'd be happy to do what we can." Leo said.

"There is no need for that, although it's appreciated. We won't kick you out, you have my word." Sanshobo said.

"You're saying that now, but you've only just _met_ Raph." Mikey said, nodding his head in Raph's direction meaningfully as if he wouldn't see it.

"_Again?!_ Mikey what the hell?! Since when am _I_ the reason we always get into trouble huh?!" Raph snapped, instantly forgetting about the head priest standing right in front of us.

"I'm just warning the guy." Mikey shrugged. "By the way, we might want to get your word that you won't kick us out in writing." He said, turning back to Sanshobo. "Or at least that you won't kick _Raph_ out."

Raph made a very dangerous noise as he started walking menacingly towards Mikey. Mike gave a yelp, running over to me and putting me between him and the oncoming figure of Raph, much to my horror.

"Hey whoa wait a minute! Don't drag me into this!" I protested, trying to pry myself free from Mikey's grip.

"No seriously..." I heard Leo say. "If there's _anything_ we can do to help out around here, just let us know."

"Perhaps I'll take you up on that offer after all." I heard Sanshobo say with a laugh.

**Xxxxx**

_._


	17. The Stranger

_Here I am~ back once more!_

_I don't own TMNT or UY._

**Xxxxx**

Getting rid of the guilt of needing to rely on Usagi every day made a world of difference. Not to mention the fact that simply having a place where we were welcome and didn't have to worry about getting kicked out at any moment or that the people who lived there would somehow trick us for whatever valuables they thought we might have was doing every-one some good.

Sanshobo was a kind man. I was a bit nervous when we first got to his temple and was unsure whether or not he'd allow us to stay here when I saw him for the first time, but in the end he really did turn out to be a kind person. He was perhaps a little rough around the edges and preferred to be listened to, but he was surprisingly open and understanding. However I was glad to see he didn't have any problems with giving Raph or Mikey a few harsh words if they did something he wasn't happy with. Probably just as well. I'm pretty sure there were places in this temple where Mikey and Raph's scuffling wouldn't be very welcomed and although I don't exactly know a lot about Buddhism and stuff I was pretty sure there were some items in the compound that needed to be kept very far away from Mikey.

Authority was very quickly established by Sanshobo as he made it clear that if we did anything he didn't like he'd tan our hides. I didn't really have any plans to go do something stupid while I was here though. The last thing we needed was to get into trouble and be thrown out. I know Sanshobo said he wouldn't, but I'm pretty sure if one of us broke something important or set the place on fire Sanshobo would tell us to hit the road. I didn't worry about Donny too much. I don't doubt that there were countless things here that Don would like nothing more than to pick up and examine, but having been strictly told not to touch the more ceremonious items was enough for him to restrain himself.

The real people I was concerned about was Mikey and Raph. Don't get me wrong, Mikey and Raph aren't walking disasters or anything like that, but I do know that when they start going back and forth they have a tendency to forget where they are and what needs to be watched out for as far as breaking goes. When Mikey got on Raph's nerves or when Raph decided he wanted to get into a wrestling match with Mike, everything else got blocked out. Oh sure, with our ninja training we were taught to be aware of our surroundings at all times, but if Raph and Mikey knew they were somewhere safe and didn't need to have their guards up everything in a room got labelled either a 'threat' or a 'non-threat'. Threats were stayed away from, and non-threats were simply forgotten. This meant that any piece of fine china, or intricate furniture or other breakables would be in danger of getting the full weight of a mutant turtle smashing into it.

However, Sanshobo seemed to have very quickly realised exactly the kind of people Raph and Mikey were and had made a point of letting them know how seriously he meant it when he said 'don't break anything'. Raph had seemed a little insulted at the implication that he was some-one who needed to be told so blatantly to be careful, but he got the message and I knew he'd keep Mikey under control. As for Mikey himself he also clearly got the message, but Mike had a habit of forgetting things sometimes. Luckily, he seemed to be a little intimidated by Sanshobo and I didn't think he'd do something reckless unless he really forgot himself, and in that case I was counting on one of us to rein him in.

And so we settled into the temple as our temporary solution until we figured out a way to get home. Usagi had done a bit of explaining to Sanshobo in the meantime regarding the portals and how we'd come to his world. Donny'd seemed concerned about this, worried that maybe a priest wouldn't be too happy about us coming from some other 'plain of being' or something. However we never really found out how he felt about this since he kept his opinions to himself. He didn't do anything to stop us from trying to open a portal to get home every day. Not that there was anything for him to disapprove of. The portal was still refusing to open for whatever reason.

Every time we tried only to have nothing happen was a major disappointment to me. At first I'd really wondered if it was somehow my fault, if I was perhaps saying the incantation wrong or something. It'd weighed heavily on my mind for a while, but after a few days I dismissed the idea that it was because of something we were doing. In the past 2 or 3 days we've been staying here at the temple, I've almost come to expect nothing to come of the little ritual we did every morning. I was a little troubled by this. We needed to get home. We needed to find a way back. And yet, somehow I was getting _use_ to nothing happening every single time we tried. I felt like I should've been going insane or something. Like I should've felt angry and afraid, but to be honest all I felt was a very heavy knot in the pit of my stomach. It was unpleasant and made me feel drained and frustrated, but it was something I could easily live with. The tiny frantic ball of uncertainty and fear was there, but it was small and easy to control. I was still aware of it though.

I missed Master Splinter, and I wondered if he was starting to get worried about us. We'd been gone for about a week now. Just long enough to be a reasonable amount of time for our 'search for Usagi', but long enough to start feeling like we'd been gone longer than what would be normal. I wondered if Master Splinter was getting anxious for us to get back. I wondered if perhaps he'd come looking for us if we stayed away for too long. I wondered if the portals were broken in our dimension as well. What would Master Splinter do if he tried to come find us and found he couldn't get here? Would he be able to get to the battle Nexus instead? Would he and the daimyo try to get here together somehow? Does he know some other way to travel between dimensions that we didn't know about? And even if he did somehow manage to get here and somehow managed to find us, would he be able to get us home?

I really didn't know. But if Master Splinter could travel through time and space and find us, I would feel a lot better. Even if he ended up being stuck here too, I'd be a lot happier. I missed my father.

"Hey Leo! You awake or what?!" Raph's voice said, dragging me back to reality.

I turned to him, trying to focus back on the present. We were sitting on the wooden steps outside the main building. In front of us was the open area between the building and the front gate. It was a rather pleasant day as far as winter goes. The sun was out and although the sky wasn't completely clear the clouds that were there were thin and allowed enough light to shine down on us. However it was getting colder with each day and the sun didn't do much to warm us up. The clothes Usagi had given us were, at the moment, the most valuable items we owned.

We'd been sitting and watching Mikey and Donny have a basic sparring match together. After a day or so we realised that with nothing too strenuous to do at the temple apart from whatever chores we could help out with and with no hard travelling ahead of us, we needed to do something to keep our skills polished. If for some reason or another we ran into some trouble, I didn't want any of us making stupid mistakes due to being out of practice. Besides, if we got home and Master Splinter heard we'd been doing nothing but sitting on our butts for who knows how many days we were gonna find ourselves doing a lot of flips.

I nodded to answer Raph's question. "Yeah I'm fine. I'm just thinking about stuff is all."

"Stuff huh?" Raph said, watching as Donny did a rather impressive evasive move when Mikey tried to catch him off guard by aiming low. "What kinda stuff is it today?"

I frowned at this, giving him a confused glance. "What do you mean by that exactly?"

Mikey changed his tactics when Donny evaded his attack, trying to lure him with a feint.

"I mean ya tend ta let stuff get to you too easy bro. And right now you got a regular buffet of stuff ya can worry about. I was just wonderin' what you were stressin' out over today exactly." Raph said matter of factly.

I pulled a face irritably at this. As far as I was concerned, all the things that were happening to us were all well worth a little stressing over. But to be honest as spiteful as Raph was trying to be, I really could use a little bit of outside input at the moment.

"I was thinking about Master Splinter." I said after a few moments.

There was a small pause before Raph spoke again.

"Ah." He said.

"D'you think he's worried yet?" I asked, keeping my eyes on the match. Two of the younger priests gave a small applause from the side-lines when Donny shot out with his bo and when it missed, used it as a lever to propel a kick forward against Mikey's plastron.

"If ya ask me bro, he was probably worryin' the second we left." Raph said, leaning forward onto his knees with his elbows.

I gave a small, single laugh at this. "Yeah. You're probably right."

"Why're you stressin' about that though?" Raph said, turning to me. "Did ya get tired of worryin' about stuff that're kinda a bigger problem right now?"

I rolled my eyes at him. I wasn't sure I really liked that Raph seemed to think I was some neurotic wreck. "No. I was just wondering what he would do if we stayed away longer than he's comfortable with."

Raph made a small noise as he thought about this. "No clue." I said, sitting back a little. "But That's his problem ain't it?" He gave me a sideways glance. "We got enough problems for you ta worry about right here Leo. Ya don't need ta start doin' Master Splinter's worryin' for him too."

I frowned slightly at this. "So you're saying you're not concerned about how he'd coping with this at all?"

"I didn't say that." Raph said, shaking his head. "But there's not much I can do about it right? Worryin' about whether Master Splinter's worried ain't gonna help anythin'. I just try not ta think about it and focus on what's goin' on here instead." As if to make a point he called out: "Watch it Don! You're gettin' too close to the well!"

Donny heard the warning and quickly side-jumped a swing from Mikey's nun-chucks, getting himself away from the hazard.

"So you're not worried about him at all?" I asked. I wasn't accusing Raph of anything, I was just trying to hear what he was thinking.

"Nah." Raph said. "I try not ta think about it."

"Hmm." I said, sinking a little lower in my spot as I focused back on the match.

Donny threw out his bo, twisting it in his hands and using the attack Mikey had just launched against him, knocking him off balance and causing him to land on his side. When Donny brought the staff down to point at Mikey's face he yielded. Don smiled before backing off and holding his hand out to help Mike up. Mikey sulked but took it, getting to his feet. The two priests who'd had nothing better to do clapped. Donny was ignoring them, but his cheeks were visibly darkening at the attention. We weren't use to having such an enthusiastic audience.

Raph rocked himself forward before getting to his feet, grasping my shoulder and using it to stand up. He gave it a rather painful squeeze as he turned to walk away. "Don't mean I don't miss him Leo."

It was night again.

Tomorrow I was going to wake up, get dressed, and then we were going to try, once again, to go home. I lay on the futon that for the time being was mine, staring up at the wooden beams of the ceiling above me. The room was quiet apart from the sound of Mikey breathing as he slept on his own bed on the other side of the room. However, despite the calming sound of his breath and the stillness of the room I couldn't sleep.

I wasn't sure why although I had a ton of good guesses: I was stressed, worried, and I was dreading going through the motions of opening the portal once again only to be met with nothing. There wasn't anything in the forefront of my mind keeping me up, but all the tiny concerns, worries and fears of the day seemed to become giant as soon as the lamps were extinguished and night crept from outside into the room me and Mikey were sharing. I gave a silent sigh, closing my eyes and trying to will myself to sleep.

You're tired. You need to rest. You'll come up with something eventually. Just stay strong and get some sleep.

No luck though. I sat up, rubbing at my face as I tried to think of a way I could perhaps tire myself out enough to drop off. Eventually I decided perhaps a walk around the compound would be enough to make me sleepy, provided it wasn't snowing.

I didn't bother with my mask and gear, simply putting on the grey kimono and _hakama_ Usagi had given me before I left the room quietly, making sure not to wake Mikey as I went. I hoped he'd stay asleep until I got back. Mikey hated it when he fell asleep with some-one else in the room only to wake up and find out he was alone.

I wrapped the silk around myself a little more as I walked down the hallway. I slid open a door leading to the outside and peered out, making sure the weather wasn't too bad. I was hit by a wall of freezing air, but apart from that the night seemed pretty clear. It wasn't snowing at least, and the wind had died. I stepped out of the warmth of the building, wrapping my arms around myself as my breath visibly curled and dissolved in front of my face. There weren't any stars in the sky, it must've been overcast again. I stared out over the empty compound for a few moments before I moved to leave the wooden porch.

I only took the first step down the stairs before a voice startled me. "Where are you going?"

I stumbled slightly in surprise, almost slipping on the icy step as I turned to see who'd followed me. Usagi was standing in the open doorway, his arms crossed tightly across his chest to keep himself warm. He was wearing only his white _juban,_ indicating he'd been in bed before he followed me. I must've woken him.

I stared at him quietly. I knew he was still mad at me for acting like an idiot towards him and I was worried he was going to remind me of it if I told him what I was doing. Even _I _knew walking around outside in the dark wasn't exactly the smartest thing to do.

Nevertheless, I saw no point in lying to him. "I couldn't sleep, so I'm taking a walk before I go back to bed."

He frowned at me, looking around the compound for a second before he focused back on me. "It is freezing Leonardo."

I sighed, turning to face him. "Yeah I know. I just didn't know what else to do."

Usagi made a noise to himself, stepping out of the building and onto the porch, giving a shudder and wrapping his arms tighter around himself. "I do not think torturing yourself will help you sleep any better."

"Maybe not." I shrugged, walking back up the steps to the porch so I could stand next to him. "But it seemed stupid to just lie awake in the dark and not do anything."

"I would argue with you, but I am too tired." Usagi said with a yawn.

"Sorry." I said. "Did I wake you up?"

"Not exactly." He said. "I could not sleep either."

I frowned lightly, blinking at him. "Any reason why not?"

He gave a noise somewhere between a sigh and a frustrated grumble, moving forward and sitting down on the stairs. I followed suit. "I am tired of this animosity between us." He said, adjusting his _juban_ so it covered his knees better. "It is unnecessary and is merely causing more problems for us."

I blinked at this, watching him carefully. I wasn't sure what he was implying. Was he trying to get me to apologise for the way I'd acted, or was he saying he just wanted to forget the whole thing and we shouldn't mention it again? I wasn't sure, and I didn't think outright asking him would be a good idea. I waited to hear if he had anything else to say about the subject before I decided how to respond.

"I am sorry that you feel somehow betrayed by my long silence." He said eventually. "And I am sorry that you are angry at me for it."

I took my cue and shook my head. "Don't be. I was being unfair, not to mention a little childish. I just let paranoia get the better of me."

"Perhaps." He said and I felt a small ripple of irritation at how easily he agreed with me. "But the fact of the matter remains that you feel I have done you wrong."

"I did yeah." I admitted. "But I've thought about it a little and-"

Before I could get past the first sentence and give a proper apology we were interrupted by a loud banging on the front gate. We both snapped our heads around, staring at it with surprise. I frowned deeply, not sure what to make of the idea of some-one arriving at the temple doorstep in the middle of the night in the dead of winter. Usagi apparently was just as suspicious and got to his feet, glaring at the gate. He seemed confused as to what to do.

There was another loud knock. I got up as well, staring at the wooden doors. Usagi looked around the compound, but we were alone. The handful of priests that resided here had all gone to bed along with Sanshobo. Despite the formidable wall, this was still a temple and not a fortress. There was little point in having something like a night guard.

My gaze flickered, falling on the thin cotton Usagi was wearing and his bare feet. "You go get Sanshobo." I said to him, climbing down the steps. "I'll go see who it is."

Usagi gave a nod, turning and going back inside and out of the cold. I walked towards the doors, fully aware of the fact that I had left my katana in my room. I wasn't sure whether I'd need them or not, after all I doubted some-one who was a threat would knock on the front door before attacking, but at the same time I couldn't help but feel cautious. Then again, there was the possibility that whoever was knocking on the door might be some-one who needed help. This was a sanctuary after all, and with the night being as cold as it was it was possible that whoever was there was just trying to find somewhere they could spend the night and not freeze to death.

Nevertheless, I kept my guard up as I removed the beam that locked the front doors and opened one, frowning at the outside world to see who was there.

There was only one person. A youngish looking man. That's to say he looked older than me, but he wasn't exactly 'old'. He was standing in front of the large gate, his arms crossed behind his back patiently as he waited for the doors to be opened. He wore a strange uniform that I didn't recognise, but then again I didn't exactly make it my job to memorise all the different uniforms, fashions and outfits of Usagi's world. The most I could tell was it was slightly more formal than Usagi's travelling gear, but it wasn't armour. His kimono was red, but over it he wore a longer, sleeveless coat which was white. His _hakama_ were black, tied around the waist by a white belt. I couldn't see anything like a sword at his side, but I wasn't naive enough to think that that meant he was unarmed. He wasn't very tall, perhaps my height if not an inch or two shorter. He looked more lean than muscular, but he stood straight and proud in front of me. He was soft beige in colour, however he seemed to be one of the rare people in this world who had markings on his face, specifically two darker brown lines running from the back of his head and over both his eyes. His ears were small and more rounded than pointed. He regarded me with sharp eyes.

"Yes?" I said, keeping my frown but opening the door a little more. I wasn't really sure how people should be welcomed at a place like this. Especially not weird people like this. I looked his coat and kimono over but I couldn't see anything like a _mon_ to identify who he was loyal to. "Can we help you?"

The strange man lifted an eyebrow very slightly at me. "You do not seem like a priest." He said carefully.

"I'm not." I said, staring back at the man, keeping a hand on the door in case I needed to close it quickly. "I'm merely a friend, but the head priest is being woken if you're looking for him."

I saw the ground around me slowly flood with light as lamps were lit in the building behind me.

"Hmm." The man said thoughtfully, looking me up and down as if sizing me up. I didn't like it.

"What're you looking for here?" I asked again, this time a little more forcefully.

The man stared at me for a moment longer before he gave his head a brief shake with a small, barely heard sigh. "Forgive me, I am merely here to deliver a message and I was hoping-."

He stopped, his gaze moving away from me to look over my shoulder. My frown deepened and I turned slightly to see what he was looking at, flitting my gaze back to him to make sure he wasn't going to try anything when I looked away. He seemed genuinely more interested in whatever was behind me though so I risked a glance.

Usagi was trotting over to join me, Sanshobo following not too far behind him. Sanshobo was frowning as he came closer, but otherwise seemed a lot less cautious than either me or Usagi. I noticed Usagi'd taken the time to wrap his blue kimono over his _juban_ while he was inside.

"Who is it Leonardo-san?" Sanshobo asked, coming closer. I found myself almost instinctively moving out of the way so he could stand in the door instead.

"He hasn't said." I answered. "But he says he has a message."

"A message? From whom?" Sanshobo asked with a frown, coming and opening the door widely to welcome the visitor.

The stranger stared at the two new people for a few moments, his gaze resting on Usagi for a second before he focused on Sanshobo, smiling.

"I come with a request from Nagahashi-dono, the lord of the north-eastern province." He said, suddenly a lot more pleasant.

Sanshobo frowned lightly at this but more in confusion than anything else. "That is a long way to come for a humble temple. But come, I'll have one of my priests brew some tea and you can give us your message out of this cold."

"No no, that will not be necessary." the man said, raising his hand slightly. Usagi frowned at this and I didn't blame him. I dunno if Usagi found it rude for the stranger to decline the offer but simply the fact that any-one would rather stay out in this cold than get warmed up was a little weird. Especially if they've apparently been travelling.

"Then I'm afraid I must ask that you deliver your message swiftly so that we do not freeze." Sanshobo said. I could detect a small hint of a demanding tone in his voice. You know, somehow I'm pretty sure Sanshobo wasn't always a priest.

The man gave a bow. "Of course." He straightened and regarded the three of us for a moment, smiling almost mischievously. "As I have said, I come baring a request from Lord Nagahashi. He has need of samurai who would be willing to lend him their swords. For a small fee of course. I was wondering if there might be any men within your temple walls with fighting experience who might be interested in offering Lord Nagahashi their services."

The man's eyes slowly drifted from Sanshobo back to the figure of Usagi who was standing on his right. I, standing on the priest's left, wasn't sure whether I should feel insulted or not. Maybe my age didn't scream 'skilled fighter' or something I dunno.

"Why would you come looking for warriors at a temple?" Usagi said, obviously noticing the man's interest in him. "And for that matter what does lord Nagahashi need samurai for? There is no hostility between provinces in this corner of the country that I am aware of, or is there another reason he is looking for warriors outside his own domain?"

"I don't pretend to know Lord Nagahashi's true intentions." The man said, however he seemed almost glad that he didn't and stated so almost proudly. "But I do know whatever he is planning has nothing to do with friction between domains. As to what his true plans are I do not know, I am merely inquiring about fighters with experience who would be willing to fight for some payment."

"A _jigoku-tabi_ then." Sanshobo said, his frown deepening slightly.

The man burst out laughing, causing me to jump a little.

"Yes! Yes I suppose that would be a perfect way to describe it." He said, still shaking slightly as he tried to calm down.

"Well I'm sorry, but I don't think any-one here has what you're looking for." Sanshobo said, completely unfazed by the man's reaction.

"I see." The man said, giving a nod. "Well then, I must apologise for waking you this late, and thank you for your time." He gave a bow at this before he turned to walk down the large staircase and back into the snowy forest.

"Hold on." Sanshobo said, calling him back. "It's the middle of the night and it will only get colder before morning. Perhaps you should wait until the sun has risen before you continue your journey. You are welcome to stay the night."

I wasn't sure I liked this idea, but I had to agree with Sanshobo. There was no reason for the man to go off and freeze to death, no matter how uncomfortable he made me feel.

The man gave Sanshobo a last, bright smile but remained where he was on the first step. "Your offer is very appreciated Head Priest, but I am afraid I must once again decline. I hope you will not take offence."

Sanshobo frowned but shook his head. The man gave a last bow before he turned and walked down the stairs. We watched him go as he made his way through the snow, seemingly oblivious to the cold before he pushed through the scraggly bushes and disappeared among the dark trees, heading in the direction of the main road.

I finally relaxed, giving a long breath before turning to the other two. "Any-one else get the creeps from that guy?"

"Hmm." Sanshobo said with a frown, his eyes still focused on the spot where the man disappeared. "I'm not so sure I buy his story."

"I agree." Usagi said. "Why would a Lord from a different province travel this far south simply to try and recruit _ronin_?"

"No idea." I said. "This kinda thing isn't normal around here?"

"Recruiting warriors? Yes. Travelling to a different province in the middle of the night while it is winter? No." Usagi said, leaning against the door-frame as he frowned to himself skeptically, his arms crossed across his chest.

"We can share theories on what he was really looking for tomorrow when it's light." Sanshobo said, turning and ushering us both back inside the compound, closing the door behind us. "Right now it is cold and it's only going to get colder. Best we all get some rest while we can."

"He's not gonna come back and cause trouble is he?" I asked, giving the front doors a worried glance.

"If he does we'll deal with it then." Sanshobo said forcefully, leading us back to the main building.

I pulled a face at this, not liking this idea at all but I didn't say anything against it. "Weird." I said, trying to shrug it off.

"He kept staring at me. Did you notice?" Usagi said thoughtfully.

I gave a small shrug. "Maybe he thought you'd be more useful to whatever weird campaign his boss was cooking up than me."

"Perhaps." Usagi said, but he seemed far from convinced.

"Everythin' ok?" a voice greeted us when we went back inside. Raph was standing in the doorway of the building, frowning at us.

"Yeah, no problem." I reassured him, closing the sliding door behind us. "Just some-one looking for some 'soldier-for-hire' type of guys."

"Good." Raph said, satisfied that there was nothing to be worried about. "We don't need any more problems right now."

"_Oyasumi_." Usagi said as we split up and went to our individual rooms.

**Xxxxx**

_Juban – under-kimono_

_Mon – crest_

_Jigoku-tabi – Lit. A journey to hell. Usually applied to Yakuza who would ask their allies for help in a fight._

_Oyasumi - "goodnight"_


	18. Unease

_Sorry updates are slower than they use to be. I don't have my own internet yet, and I'm not writing as much as I use to. But the fic's not forgotten! And updates will continue to come. Just slower than usual. Thanks for being patient._

_I don't own TMNT or UY_

**Xxxxx**

I finally managed to get some sleep once I returned to my room. Whether it was because of the frigid night air or simply because I seemed to have managed to mend the gap that had formed between me and Leonardo a little I do not know. But I didn't question it, and merely welcomed the rest.

Not that it was an overly restful night though. I found myself having a strange dream, although when I woke I forgot the details of it and was left with nothing but an unsettled feeling which proceeded to haunt me for the rest of the morning.

When I saw that the sun was up I forced myself to get out from under the warmed blankets. I was still tired but there was much to do, as always. First and foremost getting dressed and getting something to eat, and after that the usual ritual of trying to open a door to Leonardo and his brothers' home. I expected little to come of the exercise. It was becoming clear that we would have to try and come up with another method for them to travel home. How exactly was beyond me, but I hoped I would think of something eventually.

After I willed myself outside to wash up and got dressed I went to go find the others. They were getting breakfast along with the priests who lived at the temple. I walked over to the four brothers and sat down at their table. They seemed to be listening to something Leonardo was saying.

"_Ohayo_." I bid them good-morning, hoping I wasn't interrupting anything.

"Morning!" Mikey said enthusiastically before biting into a generous mouthful of rice.

"Sleep well?" Donatello asked, giving me a smile in greeting.

"Yes and no." I said honestly, looking around to see if there was anything left over for me. The fact that all four brothers were awake and apparently finishing up their meals seemed to indicated I'd overslept slightly.

"Wazzat 'spose to mean?" Raphael asked, giving me a suspicious look as he pushed an empty bowl towards me with the back of his hand.

"I had some unnerving dreams, but I cannot remember them now." I said, taking the bowl before looking around to see where I could find some food.

"If that's all you got to complain about you ain't got that many problems dude." Mikey said with a grin.

"At least you slept." Leonardo said.

"You did not?" I asked, turning to him with concern.

He made a noise, raising a hand and waving it back and forth to indicate 'not much'.

"Leo was telling us about the weird guy who showed up last night!" Mikey said as if to explain.

"Ah yes." I said, feeling myself frown at the memory. I was still troubled by the strange man that had paid us a visit last night and still didn't know what to make of him.

"So what did he want?" Mikey asked Leonardo curiously. Apparently he had not told them the full story yet.

"Well, he said that he was looking for people who could fight who'd like to work for his lord from another state or something." Leonardo said. "He didn't say what for, but apparently he didn't know."

"Sounds kinda fishy to me." Raphael said, grimacing to himself slightly.

"That's what we thought." Leonardo nodded.

"Why would he come here if he was looking for fighters?" Donatello asked. "I mean why would he come to a temple. As far as I can tell nobody here really seems the fighting type."

"Dunno." Leonardo shrugged before turning to me. "Did we even ask him?"

"We did yes." I nodded. "But I do not recall him giving us an answer."

"So why else would he come snoopin' round here?" Raphael asked, leaning back in his chair a little. "I'd say he was lookin' for trouble, but even then I don't see what's around here that'd be worth it."

"You don't think it's 'cause of us do you?" Mikey suddenly said, looking around at his brothers with a worried expression. "Like... maybe some-one's looking for us or something."

"Why would some-one be looking for us Mikey?" Donatello asked with strained patience.

"I dunno." He shrugged. "But we're the only weird things around here so why not right?"

"Well, that is true." Leonardo said, resting his chin on a fist as he frowned at the table top. "But even so why would some-one be looking for us? We don't exactly have anything worthwhile on us and we're pretty much clueless as far as this whole place goes so we don't know any useful information or anything. Besides, the guy at the door seemed pretty uninterested in me when I answered it. It's when Usagi and Sanshobo showed up that he started getting chatty."

Raphael shrugged. "Hey, if it ain't got nothin'' to do with us then that's good enough news for me. I don't want nobody on our heels when we've still got our own problems to worry about."

"Speaking of which," Donatello sighed. "Are we gonna try opening a portal again today?"

There was silence around the table as we all turned to stare at Leonardo, waiting to hear what he thought. Leonardo had his hands folded together, resting the tip of his snout against them as he frowned deeply at nothing, thinking it over. I said nothing, keeping my opinions to myself. This was a family matter and I had no place giving input when I wasn't asked. Although, to be honest, I thought trying to open a door would be pointless.

Leonardo sighed, lowering his head. "What're you guys thinking?"

The other three looked back and forth between themselves, exchanging expressions.

"It's up ta you bro." Raphael said, speaking for them all.

Leonardo nodded. He paused for a moment before sitting up straight again. "I gotta tell ya guys... I'm getting really sick of trying every day and not getting anywhere. How many times have we done this already? And not once has anything been different. I'm just tired of building my hopes up just to get them smashed."

"You're saying we should give up?" Donatello asked. Perhaps it was just me, but he sounded slightly fearful.

Leonardo however shook his head. "I'm saying we should stop trying the same thing over and over again and instead try and think of something else we could do."

"Like what exactly?" Raphael said, rather unhelpfully.

Leonardo shook his head again. "I dunno. But there's gotta be something. I've seen enough weird stuff to know there are all kinds of things we don't know about regarding time travel and dimensions and who knows what else. There's gotta be something else we can try."

"So... Like what exactly?" Raphael repeated.

"I don't know ok?" Leonardo said irritably, shooting him a frown. Raphael made a noise to himself, sitting back again.

Donatello was staying silent, staring into his empty bowl and tilting it back and forth in his hands. He looked rather miserable. Mikey was watching Raphael and Leonardo with rapt attention.

"Hey!" He suddenly said. "Maybe there's like some sceptre thingy like what the daimyo uses here! Ya know, that thing that Draco and the daimyo's son wanted and zapped us all to different wacko realities with and stuff! Maybe we could try and find something like that!"

Donatello's gaze snapped up at this. He looked mortified at the idea, although I could not figure out why.

"I dunno." Raphael said doubtfully. "I don't think magical doohickies are as easy ta find here... unlike every other damn place we been to." He scowled, taking on a sarcastic tone of voice. "That'd be too convenient."

"'Doohickies'?" Mikey said, pulling a face at him.

"Shut up." Raphael grumbled.

"How about it Usagi?" Leonardo said. He stared at me with an almost cautious expression. "D'you have things like that here?"

Donatello turned to me as well, although he seemed to be filled with dread at what I might say. I bit down on my tongue, trying to decide how to answer that question.

"Enchanted items certainly do exist..." I said, choosing my words carefully. "However I have almost never seen such things in real life save for once, and that item had nothing to do with other worlds and travelling. As for the items I have heard about in stories and myths, none of them seem to fit the criteria you are looking for."

They all sank back in their seats, three of them in disappointment and one in what appeared to be relief.

"I will try and think of something." I promised, unable to see them looking so dejected. "but until then I must agree with Leonardo. Repeating an exercise which is clearly getting you nowhere is pointless and will likely only wear you down. Best to focus your attentions elsewhere until a solution presents itself."

"I still say it's the weather." Mikey grumbled, stirring the last remains of his breakfast with his chopsticks.

"And I still say that's stupid." Donatello retorted.

"Hey, I'll take any excuse that sounds even kinda true." Raphael said with a shrug.

"Oh come on!" Donatello said. "You really think something like a little bit of cold is gonna make a difference as far as inter-dimensional travel goes?"

"Hey, I don't know nothin' 'bout portals so why not?" Raphael said. "It's about as good an excuse as anythin' else."

"So you figure we're gonna be stuck here all winter then?" Mikey asked. He didn't seem too upset about the idea though.

"Heck if I know." Raphael said shrugging.

"I hope not." Leonardo said. I turned to glance at him, unsure as to what he meant by that exactly. He was staring at the table top again. His expression was sad.

I suddenly felt as if I was intruding somehow and got up, taking the empty bowl with me to get some food instead.

"But to back-track a bit, you sure this weird guy wasn't interested in us Leo?" Donatello said as I left.

"I really don't think so Don." Leonardo said. "If anything he seemed more focused on Usagi.

This was true. I frowned to myself as I left.

A strange man under the service of Lord Nagahashi. I didn't know the Lord although I most likely passed through his domain on some occasion or another. The name meant nothing to be though, and I did not remember him being mentioned as some-one to be wary of either by my Lord Mifune in the past or Tomoe's Lord Noriyuki in the present. But the situation made me very uneasy. Lords who search for mercenaries were never a good thing.

I tried to push the thought aside for now though. There were other things I needed to address right now. First and foremost I needed to try and speak to Leonardo again. I had tried last night but we were interrupted before we could settle our differences properly and although I could tell tensions were much less between us I still wanted to lay any ill feelings between us to rest before he and his brothers left.

I wondered why he seemed so unhappy at the prospect of staying here for the entire winter. Did he perhaps not look forward to my company for that long a period of time because I had angered him? Perhaps. I don't know, and I couldn't decide how to ask either. Perhaps if things became too uncomfortable for him and his brothers it'd be better if I left. I could perhaps try and investigate this Lord Nagahashi instead.

Why would he send a messenger so far away simply for some soldiers? Was his domain in such dire straits that he needed to rely on other provinces' masterless warriors? Was the towns and villages in his province devoid of men who could fight? Were the numbers of his armies diminished? I highly doubted it. It was possible that his militia was smaller than he would like, but then why travel to outside provinces to try and recruit men where he ran the risk of letting his neighbours know his force was weakened and make himself a target for land-hungry lords? It did not make sense to me, regardless of how I tried to think about it.

Perhaps it was just paranoia, but I somehow had the unsettling feeling that something sinister was afoot. I had half a mind to try and find out what I could in the areas surrounding Sanshobo's temple, but I was not sure if I should do so and leave my friends alone. Common sense would have me simply forget the matter and focus instead on my friends' problem, but, as per usual, I found myself obsessing over the topic and wanting to investigate it further.

I tried to forget it though. At least for the moment. I focused instead on the here and now.

Donatello seemed to be enjoying his time here and I noticed he liked speaking to some of the younger priests. He appeared to be making friends, although he still spent most of his time with his brothers. Either that or writing in his little bound book. Raphael and Mikey had started a new game where they spent most of the daylight hours scouting the area outside the temple walls, becoming more familiar with both the area as well as the basic countryside of this world. This left Leonardo spending most of his time by himself. I wasn't sure if he enjoyed the privacy that was rare for him, or if he was finding it to be lonely.

That afternoon I found him standing on his own on the porch of the main building, leaning against a support beam as he looked over the snow-smothered garden. I couldn't tell if he was staring at something specifically or if he was lost in thought. Either way however, it felt wrong just leaving him like that so walked over.

"Something on your mind?" I asked as I did so.

He turned to me, woken up from his daydream. He sighed, turning back to the front. "Just the usual stuff."

I made a small noise at this, nodding. I stood next to him, turning to try and see what he was looking at. There was nothing outstanding though.

We stood in silence for a few moments. I didn't know what to say to him, or what topic to bring up in case it started a conversation he might not want to have.

"It's quiet here." Leonardo said eventually, apparently just to break the silence between us.

"It is calmer than what you are use to I am sure." I nodded, although I didn't know if he'd meant it as a compliment or a complaint.

Leonardo nodded. "It's a nice change... but I'm not really sure what to do with myself here. Every-one else seems to have found a hobby to keep themselves busy except me."

"If you count Raphael-san and Mikey-kun carrying pine-needles and snow indoors and driving Sanshobo-san mad as a hobby." I said with a grin.

Leonardo chuckled at this. "Sounds about right." He turned to me. "What do you do when you're just hanging around somewhere?"

"Hmm." I said, thinking it over. "Truth be told, I have not had the opportunity to simply 'do nothing' for perhaps several years now." I gave a shrug. "Karma always seems to find someway to make my life interesting as it were."

Leonardo gave a proper laugh at this. "I heard that!" He settled down again, leaning against his pillar a little more. "I'm not really sure I've had this kind of downtime before. I mean sure we've had 'downtime' sure, but then we'd do stuff like play video-games or mess around the sewers or something. It's kinda weird to have nothing to do but also... have nothing to do." He turned to me, arching a brow. "Does that make sense?"

"Not really." I said, smiling at him.

He rolled his eyes. "Alright whatever. But anyway, if you actually _did_ have time to do nothing, what would you do? Or what _did_ you do rather."

"I paint." I said simply.

Leonardo stared at me wide-eyed, completely taken aback by this. "...No way."

I blinked back before giving him a slight shrug. "Is that such an unusual hobby?"

"No not exactly." Leonardo said with an almost disbelieving laugh. "Just caught me by surprise that's all."

I frowned at him irritably, turning to stare back at the garden. "Well you were the one who asked."

"Right." Leonardo said, still smiling broadly to himself.

The conversation petered out and we stood in silence again. I found my mind wandering, the now familiar topics running through my head: Of doors to other worlds and the winter weather before it finally rested once more on the stranger who had come calling last night. My thought process then once again led me down the path of wanting to find out more about what was going on and whether it might be for the best if I left for a while. I wondered if I should express this to Leonardo.

"I am concerned about the messenger from last night." I said before I had even properly decided whether to bring it up or not.

Leonardo turned back to me. "Oh yeah?"

I nodded thoughtfully. "I cannot drive it from my mind. Nothing he had said made sense to me, and I feel that if I could do some investigation on my own I might get better answers than the ones he had given us."

"Investigation? Like what? Asking people and stuff?" Leonardo asked, frowning at me. "Who would you ask?"

"I do not know." I said truthfully. "But perhaps I should go and ask what sort of plans Lord Nagahashi has at the source. If I ask as a potential sword for hire I might get some answers from him and settle my own curiosity a bit better."

"Woah. You mean walk all the way to Lord whatsisname's' front door and ask him yourself?" Leonardo asked, pushing off the pillar.

"Mmm." I said with a soft rumble in the back of my throat. "I feel there was more to the story than what the man told us last night. And I find the whole situation to be very suspicious."

Leonardo's frown deepened. "So... you wanna just leave?"

I said nothing for a moment, frowning at the garden in front of us as I tried to think of how I could answer this question. I licked my lips before I gave a sigh and told the truth when I couldn't think of a better reply.

"I was wondering if perhaps my absence here for a short time might not be for the best." I risked glancing at him out of the corner of my eye. "You seem unhappy at the idea of staying here for a long period of time, and I am concerned it is because you do not wish to be around me when you are still harbouring a grudge."

"Oh come on, now you're just being stupid!" Leonardo snapped irritably. "Whatever gave you the idea that I wanted to go home just to get away from you?"

I blinked at him. "Well... I do not know but I just assumed-"

"You should try _talking_ once in a while." Leonardo said, scowling at me. "Me wanting to go home has nothing to do with you!"

I stared at him quietly. "I just thought you were anxious to leave because you were still angry at me for not contacting you."

Leonardo made a noise at this, crossing his arms and leaning against the beam again. "I stopped being mad about that a while ago when I realised what a jerk I was being. Besides," He turn to look at me again. "I thought you were the one who was mad because of my little temper tantrum."

"You did not make me angry." I said. "You hurt my feelings."

There was a pause and I could see Leonardo shift his weight slightly, clearly uncomfortable and unsure of how to respond to this.

"However," I added. "Lately I have merely been concerned that you are the one who is mad."

"I'm not." Leonardo said to the garden.

"Neither am I." I said, turning to stare back at it myself.

There was a drawn out moment of silence during which I could almost feel him exhale. I turned to look at him slightly and saw him smile quietly to himself as he stared straight ahead, leaning contently against the wooden pillar. I found myself smiling as well.

"So..." he said eventually. "Painting huh?"

"Only as a hobby." I said, feeling rather foolish.

"Right." Leonardo said, pushing himself off the beam and turning to walk down the steps. I watched him for a second before I followed.

"So back to this weird guy." Leonardo said as we walked, his tone slightly more serious again.

I nodded. "Yes."

"D'you still wanna try and find out more about what's going on?" He asked, turning to look at me.

I gave a nod. "I know I shouldn't and that it is none of my business, but I can not help but feel unsettled. I would feel much better if I could at least learn a little more about what is going on." I sighed. "But I suppose it is not important right now and we have more pressing matters to focus on."

"You could always go if you really wanted to." Leonardo said. "You're not our mom you know. We don't need you to babysit us."

"Perhaps not." I laughed at the mental image. "But I would not think of abandoning you for a fool's errand. Especially if it is simply to settle my own nosiness. It is a habit I should try and break as it is."

"But you still wanna go." Leonardo pressed.

I sighed. "Yes... but I do not want to leave you and your brothers alone."

We walked a little further, rounding the main building as we wandered aimlessly through the temple grounds. I saw Donatello sitting on the porch of one of the storage houses, his small book open as he enthusiastically explained something to a young priest who was looking over his shoulder to inspect the strange writing.

"You could always take us with you." Leonardo said.

I turned to stare at him silently.

He smiled at me. "We got nothing better to do."

**Xxxxx**

_Usagi painting. Totally canon. And that's wonderful 8D_


	19. Another Road Trip

_Sorry for the delay. I still don't have internet. XP;; And.. ..you know.. ..life..._

_But as always, the fics' not forgotten and I have made a promise to myself to finish it (because I've been bad about finishing in the past). Thanks again for being patient._

_I don't own TMNT or UY_

**Xxxxx**

I took a moment to see where the next branch was before I jumped over, swinging myself up onto it before checking the ground below me.

"Come-one Raph! Try to keep up!" I called.

"I already told you Mikey, I ain't racin' ya." Raph called back irritably, but I could see he was walking faster than he needed to.

"You're no fun!" I called with a frown, sticking my tongue out at him before working my way to the next tree.

"Yeah? Well I just don' feel like trippin' over a tree-root and crackin' my head open like an egg!" Raph grumbled, pushing past a spiky looking bush.

"You should come up here!" I called back, hooking my legs around my branch so I could swing upside down to grin at him.

"So I can slip and fall? No thanks." He said, stopping to frown up at me.

"Geez! Some-one's in a good mood today!" I said, rolling my eyes with a smile although to tell you the truth, his attitude was annoying me. I was getting really tired of all the pessimism hovering around every-one lately. It really bugged me.

"Why're you up there anyway?" Raph called, turning to walk again.

"Duh!" I called back, treading the length of the branch with my arms outstretched in a mock display of trying to keep my balance before lightly hopping onto the next one. "You're checking the ground right? So I'm checking things out from above! It's basic strategy Raph!"

"I really doubt you're thinkin' about stuff like strategies Mikey." He said as he walked on.

"Hey! I think about stuff!" I called back. Which was true, I did think about stuff. Like how if I stayed in the trees I could stay out of the snow and stop myself from getting wet and cold.

"Yeah, well have ya though about stuff like deer-ticks?" Raph called from somewhere among the foliage.

I felt my skin crawl at this, but there was no way I was gonna let him know he'd creeped me out. "Hey, keep your phobias to yourself! I'm sure I can handle a few creepy crawlies."

"Well don't come cryin' ta me when you've got a blood-sucker attached to ya." Raph said, appearing from the bushes again.

I frowned to myself as I moved to catch up. "I'm sure there're just as many bugs down there Raph." I grinned to myself as a wicked thought struck me. I sat myself down on the branch and started to count off, loud enough so he could hear me. "There's probably stuff like slugs, spiders, centipedes, those bugs with the horns on their heads-"

"Yeah. Scurryin' around when there's like 3 feet of snow on the ground. Sorry Mikey, I ain't buyin' it." Raph said, but he didn't sound fully convinced.

I decided to let him off the hook though and kept going. The idea of things that bite being in the trees wasn't the greatest thought in the world, but I'd still risk a bug-bite over sloshing through the cold on the ground. Besides, the view was better from up here. I couldn't see much of the forest floor, but I could get a good glimpse of the temple compound every few moments when the trees thinned or we got close enough.

I didn't really know if any of this scouting would be useful to know later or not, but I didn't really care. I was having fun! That was the main point for me. I wasn't really sure what Raph's plan was exactly, whether he was trying to scope out the surrounding area or if he just wanted to get some exercise or if he was just doing what he could to kill time. I didn't really care one way or the other. I liked tagging along and leaving whatever the important stuff was up to him. That left me free to just goof around and do what I wanted without having to worry about knocking something over or barging into a place I wasn't suppose to like at the temple. I'd warmed up to the people who lived here though which made my own life a lot easier. I didn't feel so weird and awkward around them any more. Next step was gonna be trying to make friends. I mean if we were gonna be stuck here for a while it'd be kinda dumb to hang out and not get to know some of the guys here right?

I found myself on a branch with no obvious place to go. I still didn't like the idea of trudging through the snow though so I climbed a little higher, hoping to find an opposite branch a little further up. I stopped, standing on a branch and holding onto the trunk beside me to keep myself steady as I looked around the area. The bare branches were thin around here and I could once again see the temple a short distance away. I was close enough to see over the wall and into the compound itself. There were some branches in the way but I could see enough to see a well and a small section of porch as well as a decent amount of open space.

I was about to look away to try and find a tree branch again when I spotted my oldest brother and his buddy walking across the compound together.

"Hey Raph!" I called down, craning my neck to try and see where he'd gone.

"What now?" He called back, although I couldn't spot him. "Where are you?"

"Up here!" I called, hoping that was a good enough explanation. "Check it out! Inside the compound!"

"Sorry Mikey, but I'm still workin' on that x-ray vision." He said sarcastically. "What is it?"

"Leo and Usagi are taking a walk together!" I called, sitting myself down on the branch, dangling my feet over the side so I could watch them.

"Everyhtin' ok?" Raph said, sounding less stand-offish and more concerned.

"Like what d'you mean?" I asked, tilting my head to myself.

"Are they fightin'?" Raph asked.

"Er..." I watched them for a few seconds."Define 'fighting'."

"Cut the crap Mikey, are they fightin' or not?" Raph snapped, finally coming into view below my tree, although he didn't seem to have seen me. "Like, they're not comin' to blows or anythin' right?"

I laughed at this. "Yeah right! Leo's not exactly the kind to start throwing punches Raph!"

"Says you!" Raph called. "You've just never pissed him off enough! What are they doin'?"

"They look like they're arguing." I said, squinting to try and see better. "But they don't look angry at each other. They both look like they're trying to explain something."

"You sure?" Raph asked, finally catching a glimpse of me and stopping to stare up at me.

"Hey I know 'angry' ok?" I said, shooting him a look. "I gotta deal with you all the time right? And I say don't worry. I think they're just talking about something and they're not agreeing or something like that."

"D'you think they made up?" Raph asked, folding his arms and leaning against my tree.

"How would I know?" I said, getting up again when they moved out of my line of vision. "But they seem pretty cool. So I hope so."

"Yeah, me too." Raph said, pushing off the tree again. "I've had enough of their bullshit."

"You and me both." I admitted, looking around till I found a branch to climb onto.

"You wanna head back and see what's up?" He asked, watching me.

"Sure." I shrugged, making my way towards the ground.

"Great." Raph said, waiting for me. "Let's hope they really have sorted themselves out. I'll be glad when I can scratch that off my list of things ta worry about."

I dropped to the ground, shivering at the cold, wet feel of the snow. "I thought you're the one who's been telling Leo not to worry so much."

"Right." He said, turning to walk back to the entrance of the temple. "Between you an me Mikey, I'm talkin' to myself just as much when I tell him that."

"Are ya _nuts?_" Raph suddenly blurted out, causing me to jump a little.

Leo stopped, turning to blink at him in surprise.

The four of us along with Usagi were all gathered around a spot on the porch of the main building. Leo had been in the middle of telling Raph, Don and me about how he and Usagi had been talking about ditching the temple and trying to find out more about the weird guy they'd seen last night, or learn more about what he'd been talking about or something. Leo'd just finished saying how he'd wanted to go with Usagi when Raph interrupted.

A frown slowly formed on Leo's face as he glared at him. "You got a problem Raph?"

"Yeah!" Raph snapped. "Mostly about how you wanna go runnin' off ta do stupid stuff that's got nothin' to do with us and leavin' the rest of us here ta twiddle our thumbs waitin' for you to get back!"

Leo's frown deepened at this. "That's not what I'm saying at all!"

"Leonardo suggested;" Usagi interrupted, his voice calm but loud to cut through the growing argument. "That you can all accompany me if you wish. There is little to do here at the temple itself, and if I head straight north it should not take overly long to reach this Lord Nagahashi's domain. From there it will be easy to find his palace and enquire about this strange hiring of _ronin_. If we pose as possible candidates I am sure he will give us a little more information than the messenger from last night did."

"That aint gonna work either!" Raph said, obviously not sold on the idea at all. "I dunno what you two've been talkin' about but ya've obviously forgotten a tiny detail as far as travelling goes!" He raises a hand, rubbing forefinger and thumb together. "Cash! Or were you plannin' on fundin' this little field trip on hopes and dreams or somethin'?"

"I have enough for the trip there most certainly." Usagi said. "And if Lord Nagahashi has good reasons for his need of fighting men, perhaps I will take him up on his offer. At least until I have made enough to support myself for a while."

"And if he's plannin' something weird?" Raph said, his eyes narrowing. "Which I bet ya is a lot more likely!"

"Then we shall come back here." Usagi said. He didn't look at all worried about this. I guess he'd figured some-one was gonna have something to say about the money and had prepared his answers beforehand or something.

"And you can do that without any-one freezin' or starvin' ta death?" Raph said. "And what about the rest of the winter huh? Or did ya suddenly decide you were gonna give up eatin' for a while?"

"I can get us all back without much trouble." Usagi said calmly. "And I know that Sanshobo will be kind enough to let me stay the remainder of the winter. Once the weather improves I will be able to travel to town and offer my services to build up my purse again."

"We've already talked it over Raph." Leo said, still glaring at him. "I didn't like the idea much either, but I'd rather go with him and check all this out in case it _is_ something weird." He paused for a moment, not breaking eye-contact with Raph who was still staring him down. "But if you'd rather stay here then go ahead. We'll be back after we've checked it out and we're not exactly planning on doing anything crazy."

"Of course not" Raph spat, sitting back down. "We _never_ plan on doin' crazy things! They just always _happen_! And they usually happen when one of us goes and does somethin' stupid like this!"

"So stay here." Leo said icily. "There's no-one forcing you to come with us."

Raph made a loud, aggravated noise, shaking his head. "You're makin' as if you're giving me a choice Leo but you're not!" Leo opened his mouth but Raph interrupted him before he got a proper word out. "No! No you're not! You're sayin' I can do what I want but you know that I'm not gonna stay here and wait for ya to come back! I'll drive myself crazy! And even if I did stay here I just know somethin's gonna happen to make you late in comin' back and then I'm gonna get impatient and run off ta look for you and then we're stuck in a giant mess! Don't sit there and make like you're letting me choose when ya already know damn well what I'm gonna do!"

"I'm not!" Leo said, sounding frustrated. "If you're really gonna be so uptight about it then sure! Come with us! But if you're just gonna complain the whole time about how stupid you think this is then do us all a favour and stay here!"

"Yer arguing over somethin' that's been decided _for_ me Leo!" Raph said, gritting his teeth.

"That's a lie and you know it!" Leo spat back.

"If it is going to be such an upset," Usagi interrupted, rubbing his forehead in the classic sign of 'you're all giving me a headache'. "Then perhaps we should just call it off all together."

"God, don't you start." Raph said in exasperation. "Look why are we fightin' over this? It's pretty obvious you're both goin' and that means I'm gonna follow you whether I like it or not so why are we doin' this?"

"I dunno." Leo said with a grumble. "You're the one making this into a problem, not us."

"It is simple." Usagi said, lifting his face out of his hand. "I am going, and Leonardo has said he is going. So, are you accompanying us or not Raphael-san?"

Raph glared at Usagi with narrow eyes for a few seconds before he shrugged and looked away as if he suddenly got bored with the conversation. "Sure."

Usagi sighed, relaxing. "Alright then. Glad we have that sorted."

I stared at him wide-eyed. He was kidding right? This was far from 'sorted'! We were gonna have to deal with 'grumpy Raph' for the rest of the day! Sorted my foot.

"Alright. So what about you two?' Leo said, turning to Donny and me. "I know we always do the group thing, but you don't need to come if you don't want to."

Donny snorted at this. "Yeah right Leo! I'm with Raph on this one. You're acting like we've got a choice here!" However unlike Raph, Don didn't seem to have a problem with this and smiled. "I'm with you bro. Besides, it'd be great to see an Edo-period Palace! I don't mind braving the cold a little."

Raph mumbled something about sightseeing and tourists but Leo ignored him, smiling back at Don and giving a nod, apparently relieved that some-one wasn't acting like a jerk about this. He then turned to me, although I have no idea why he even bothered. Like Raph said, we weren't really getting a choice here.

"How about it Mikey? You coming?"

I grinned widely at him. "You bet!"

I didn't bother saying more than that. Truth is I'd much rather have stayed at the temple where it was safe and warm than to go running around in the wilderness, but I didn't want to be the only one staying behind. As nice as Sanshobo and the rest of the guys here were, I really didn't wanna stay here by myself. I hated being alone more than anything else in the world. And being alone with a bunch of strangers was even worse.

Leo nodded, turning to Usagi. "There you have it."

"Indeed." Usagi smiled back. "I suppose it is just as well. There are too many anxieties and worries among us as it is. I do not think I could really handle any more to do with split families and worrying about each other along with everything else."

"Agreed." Donny said, adjusting his position on the porch.

I heard Raph grumble something about Donny just saying that because he wanted to go sightseeing. I fought off a frown and smiled at the others instead. "So when do we hit the road?"

"Tomorrow morning would be best." Usagi said, pushing himself to his feet. "We could do it the day after tomorrow as well if it is more convenient, but I do not think dragging out the suspense of taking a trip would be useful."

"Then again, we should probably let Priest Sanshobo and the others know we're leaving before just disappearing." Donny said, staring up at Usagi from his seat.

"'Others'? What 'others'?" Raph said irritably, twisting himself to frown at Don.

Don cocked a brow at him. "What do you mean 'what others'? There's more than one person here you know Raph!"

I grinned widely to myself. "Aww, Just as Donny's made some friends we're leaving again!"

"Shut up." Don said, looking embarrassed.

"He has a point though." Leo said, getting up too. "Maybe it'd be better if we told Sanshobo properly instead of just running off without warning."

"I suppose you are right." Usagi said, thinking it over. "We will see how it plays out."

In the end we did stay an extra day after we told Sanshobo what we were gonna do. Or rather after Leo and Usagi told Sanshobo what we were gonna do. The guy didn't seem too bummed about it. I guess showing up outta nowhere and disappearing again wasn't a weird thing for Usagi to do. Either that or he was just itching to get me and Raph outta his hair for a while. Still, it didn't feel right to just announce that we were going and then ditch the place as soon as we could. That seemed wrong after the guy put us up for so long.

We left the next day and started making our way back to the main road. We followed it for a while before we turned at a fork and started heading what I guess was north. I wasn't really paying that much attention. It was Usagi's job to lead the way and Leo's job to act as backseat driver. The rest of us just did what we wanted. Raph was still being cranky about this whole plan. I tried to snap him out of it but that kinda backfired and got me a scolding from Leo so I left the jerk alone and tried to find some-one else to play with, even though the only person left was Donny. He seemed to be doing his nerdy science stuff as we walked though and I really didn't feel like listening to him rambling on about dandelions or whatever. I stole his notebook and ran off with it once which was fun, but after that he kept a close eye on it. I tried to see if I could snatch it from him which was fun for a while, but he was being too vigilant and eventually I got bored of this game. Donny said I was being stupid and that there were all kinds of awesome things to see along the countryside and that I was probably never gonna see stuff like this again. I didn't really get it. Sure the view was nice, but I can only stare at it for so long ya know? I need something to entertain me.

Luckily Raph came to my rescue after we spent the night at a small inn before moving on. He snapped out of his grumpy mood and was more than happy to threaten me with a butt-kicking in a far less serious way when I started to bug him. Just as well, I was starting to consider trying to play with Leo or Usagi and I don't think they'd be very impressed with me if I did.

It took a few days but eventually while we were walking down a larger road Usagi announced that we were in a different province although how the heck he could tell I have no idea. Maybe he's got like samurai-spidey-senses or something.

Anyway, we kept going, working our way through various foresty places as well as some fields, next to small streams and now and then through a town which, no matter how many times we saw one, always prompted a geek out from Donny. I just pretended not to know him and that he was just some weird guy following us.

The weather was holding out pretty good although there was snow almost every night and it was a lot colder than it use to be. Usagi said something about how it was gonna be colder the closer we got to the sea but I didn't really care about the reason. It was cold! That's all I cared about!

We usually found an inn along the roadside or in a small town to spend the night. Once we had to spend a night twice when it kept snowing the entire day and Usagi didn't feel comfortable travelling when we couldn't see 3 feet in front of ourselves. Generally though we were having good luck. One time we spent the night in a weird house thingy we found which was empty but still looked pretty good. Otherwise I think there were one or two times we thought we weren't gonna make it to the next town before it got dark but we always did.

I dunno what the others' opinions were, but I thought the trip was fun! Sure it was cold and wet and tiring, but luck seemed to, for once, be on our side and we were all friends again. I was glad. No more Leo and Usagi weirdness was great! With that out of the way we only had to worry about stuff like this Naga-whatsit guy's weird plans and being stuck in another dimension. And to be honest, I've been stuck in parallel dimensions that sucked a lot harder than this one.

**Xxxxx**

_Slow chapter is slow. Next one is better._


	20. The Audience

_I don't own TMNT or UY_

**Xxxxx**

I still didn't like this idea, but it was far too late to back out of this thing now. Not that I really felt like I wanted to though. I mean, if I'd have had my way we would've just stayed at the temple where we didn't need to worry about stuff like making Usagi bankrupt. I also preferred knowing that I was gonna have a bed at night and don't need to worry about sleeping outdoors or anything. But there was no way I was gonna let Leo and Usagi run off and get themselves into crap alone.

But as if to spite me, the trip went pretty smoothly without any problems. I'm not sure if I'd have preferred it if something bad happened just so I could rub Leo's face in it, but on the other hand I was glad there was nothing to worry about, even if it made me feel pathetic for the giant tantrum I'd thrown before we left.

But whatever. We were here now and that was the main point. I was just gonna act like I'd never thought there'd be a problem and hope no-one else brought up my behaviour from a few days ago. I knew Leo'd keep his trap shut and Donny'd never start a fight on his own if he could help it. That just left Mikey, and I had a feeling that if he could figure out how to turn it into a game he'd be more than happy to poke fun at me for acting like an ass. If he did though, I was gonna make sure to pound him.

So far though he'd kept quiet about it seeing as we were a little distracted by the 'castle-town' we'd arrived at. There wasn't that much difference between it and the other towns we'd passed through, apart from this one being a lot bigger than you're average farming village. What made it seem almost otherworldly though was the silhouette of this Lord whatever-his-name-was' palace looming over us and taking up a large chunk of the horizon. Donny was keeping his eyes glued to it as if he was expecting it to get up and do a dance or something and didn't wanna miss it. I had to admit, it was a pretty impressive sight.

I dunno what it was built out of but I had a good hunch that, at least the outside of it, was made of more than just paper and wood. The palace had a large wall surrounding the bagoda style roofs of the towers inside of it. It was ridiculously tall, so much so it could've counted as its own damn building! The bottom of it was made up of what looked like stacked stones, above it there was a second wall sprouting from the stone one which made it even higher. It was soft white in colour with a modest sloping roof of what looked like black or dark grey slate. I could spot small, rectangular holes cut into the white wall every few feet, maybe the size of my palm. I didn't really see the point since they were way too small to be windows and since this was an outside wall I really didn't think they were suppose to be for ventilation. I had half a mind to ask either Donny or Usagi what they were, but I wasn't sure I could do it without getting a full blown history lesson. Luckily I'm not the only uneducated one here and when Mikey pointed them out Donny said they were meant for gunmen.

On the other side of the wall there were maybe three or four tall buildings with several stacked roofs. Kinda like a layered cake if you'll excuse the extremely girly comparison. Among them there was one very large, very wide tower. It's dark roofs and balconies were slightly more elegant in design that those of the ones around it and its windows were noticeably larger, especially on the top most 'layer'. All of the buildings I could see rising up from behind the giant wall were the same powdered white colour. I wondered if it made the building blinding to look at in the summer. In this miserable weather the white walls looked kinda dull compared to the much sharper white of the snow covering the refined roofs and canopies. It reflected the white and grey clouds of the overcast sky. Maybe in the summer it was a pretty fancy sight, but without a sun to properly shine on it, it looked very gloomy and sad to me. Almost as if it was hollow inside.

We didn't try and barge in on this Lord guy right away. It was getting late by the time we reached the town and we all needed some hot food and rest before we tried talking to some-one official. Besides, Usagi seemed anxious to give us a rundown on what we should and shouldn't do. Normally I wouldn't put too much weight on stuff like that and just try not to rile any-one up and keep everything calm, but seeing as I didn't feel like getting my head sliced off for coughing the wrong way I thought maybe it'd be a good idea if Usagi gave us a small crash course on what to say and do when we actually try talking to this guy.

"I doubt we will get an audience with Lord Nagahashi himself." Usagi said as he scooped up some of his noodles, slurping them down quickly to talk again without getting interrupted. "Most likely we will speak to one of his generals or bodyguards who will act as his envoy."

"Aww! Ya mean we get all this way and don't even get to see the guy himself? What a rip!" Mikey moaned loudly.

"A representative will give us just as much information as the Lord himself would Mikey-kun." Usagi said, giving him a smile.

"That still blows." Mikey said with a sulk, poking at his bowl of watery noodles.

"We'll still get to go inside though right?" Donny said eagerly. I rolled my eyes.

Usagi gave a chuckle. "We will still go inside, although we will most certainly not see anything like an inner sanctum or a throne room."

"Aw well." Don shrugged, smiling widely. "Next time then."

"I hope you are joking." Usagi said, pulling a face to himself.

"Don't be so sure." Leo said, giving Donny a knowing smile.

Don rolled his eyes in mock announce. "Sure. Go ahead and make fun."

"What exactly are ya gonna do with all those scribbles anyway?" I asked him, glancing at his notebook which was starting to look kinda battered.

Donny blinked at me for a few moments before frowning to himself thoughtfully. "I'm dunno." He gave a shrug. "Maybe I'll write a book or something."

"Maybe not the best idea Don." Leo said with a concerned expression.

"Yeah yeah." Donny sighed. "I guess not."

"Why not?" Mikey blinked at him from over his bowl.

Donny pulled a face at him. "You mean besides putting factual information out there about other dimensions and stuff as well as bringing a little more attention to our family as a whole if the thing gets published?"

Mikey gave a shrug. "I doesn't have to be a textbook though right? You could make it like it was something you made up or something."

"Maybe." Donny said. "But that'd still bring too much unwanted attention on us."

"Dude." Mikey said, focusing back on his noodles. "That's what the internet is for."

"Yeah right." Donny scoffed. "Like any-one would see it online or even care."

Usagi gave a rather loud sounding sigh at this, scooping his chopsticks into his mouth again and looking light-heartedly annoyed at the conversation. Leo chuckled at him.

"Back to this Nagahashi guy," I said to change the subject to something we could all actually understand. "I still say he's up ta somethin' weird, but the town itself looks sane so that's a good sign."

"Yes." Usagi said with a nod. "However, I try not to judge the inner workings of a town or city by its appearance. There are usually dark things swirling below the surface."

"Great." I grumbled. "Ya had to ruin it for me didn't you?"

"_Gomen._" He apologized, lifting his bowl to drain the soup.

"Well, even if there is something strange going on, that doesn't mean we have to get involved." Leo said. "This place doesn't have anything to do with us and really, if he's doing something that's not completely legal we can just turn around and walk away."

"That's kinda uncharacteristically apathetic of you." Donny said, blinking at him.

"I put my family first." Leo said simply, focusing on his food again. "I don't really see how getting involved in something that's none of our business will help any-one."

Usagi was tapping his chin with the dry end of his chopstick thoughtfully as he stared at the table. He didn't say anything. I could feel my expression tighten slightly at this, not liking his behaviour.

"And then you're gonna get us back ta Sanshobo right Long-Ears?" I said to snap him out of whatever train of thought he was following.

He looked up at me before he gave a nod and a small smile. "Yes, then I will lead you back."

"We're countin' on ya." I said, making my damnedest sure to make it sound like I wasn't being too serious. But if Usagi was anything like Leo I knew the sentence would bury itself deep in his head and stop him from making his own little plans without us.

Usagi gave a nod. "Do not worry. I will not let you down."

"Unless we get snowed in or something." Mikey sighed, staring at the door of the inn.

"You're all real rays of sunshine ain't ya?" I said, shooting Mikey a dirty look. "It's like you're temptin' fate or somethin'"

"I hope not!" Leo said. "Life's far too interesting at the moment already!"

"Amen." I said with a nod, lifting my cup of tea slightly in a mock toast.

"I find life is never so dull as to not get even more complicated." Usagi remarked.

"You all suck." I grumbled.

I thought I was the first one up, but when I stumbled down the stairs of the inn to see if any-one was awake to serve me some food I found Usagi was already there and by the looks of it he'd been up for a while. I made a noise to myself as I tried to shake off my sleep, walking over to him.

I hadn't even seen the outside world yet and I knew it was gonna be a very cold day today. I could hear the wind outside as it tried to find any gap in the building and force its way in. I could hear the loud bangs of something wooden outside being blown around as it thrashed against the sides of the inn before going silent again, probably getting stuck in a snowdrift somewhere.

But besides the gale outside there was no other sound downstairs. Usagi and I were the only people up. I had a hunch that had more to do with the cold than the time. It was early, sure, but it was definitely morning already. The innkeeper was probably awake though. I noticed the paper lamps had been lit and I thought I could smell the faint scent of food being prepared somewhere in the building. Apart from that though it seems every-one except us two schmucks had decided to stay in bed for as long as they could get away with. If the weather outside was as bad as it sounded I bet there were more than a few people here who decided to just scratch whatever plans they'd had for the day and opted for not freezing. However, I knew the five of us were probably still gonna try and see this Nagahashi guy, bad weather or not. We're idiots that way.

I walked over to where Usagi was sitting. He had his fingers laced together and was resting his muzzle against them, his eyes glazed over. He looked totally lost to the world, thinking his own thoughts. He was frowning lightly to himself. Whatever it was he was thinking, it didn't look like it was very comforting.

I felt kinda uneasy about this. I was still worried he might up and ditch us at some point if this Nagahashi guy's plans ended up being something we weren't interested in but that he felt needed to be sorted out. Usagi doesn't strike me as the kinda guy who'd abandon some-one, but part of me wondered if he would if he felt there was a good enough reason for it. I dunno. Maybe I'm selling the guy short, but I could understand if he felt there was something going on that might threaten his home and that that was more important that baby-sitting the four of us. But I didn't want him to get any bright ideas. We might be able to take care of ourselves, but it was a lot easier to have some-one who actually knew where the heck we were.

I sat down at the table, purposefully being louder than I needed to to snap him out of it. He woke up from his daydream and turned to stare at me. He smiled when he saw who it was, sitting up a little straighter.

"Raphael-san. I did not hear you come down." He said, stifling a yawn.

"I just woke up." I said, as if this explained anything. "You're up early. Ya anxious to get goin' or somethin'?"

He shook his head. "No nothing like that. To be honest I was not sleeping very well."

"Mikey's snorin' got too much for ya enh?" I said, giving him a grin. "You get use to it after a while."

"No, it was not like that." He said, stretching his arms over his head as if he'd just woken up himself. "It was not any one of you. I just had a restless night."

"Too cold for ya?" I asked, crossing my arms over the top of the table as I arched a brow at him.

He shook his head. "No. Strange dreams."

I laughed at this. Usagi looked insulted but I couldn't help myself.

"Sorry." I said, trying to pull a straight face again. "Just strikes me as kinda funny that some-one like you would let a few nightmares scare 'im."

"They were not nightmares." He grumbled at me, his pride obviously hurt. "They were merely... strange."

"Oh yeah?" I smiled at him. "What're they about?"

There was a pause as Usagi thought a little before he shook his head again. "I do not remember."

"Awesome." I said sarcastically, leaning back in my seat. "If ya can't remember they can't have been that bad." I looked him over. "You're probably just tense 'cause we gotta go deal with this Lord guy and you're worried one of us is gonna get us all killed doin' something stupid."

Usagi nodded slowly at this, frowning as he thought it over. He then sighed and gave a more definite nod. "I suppose you are right. But if that is the case then feeling tired while speaking to a Lord's envoy will do little to settle my nerves."

"Hey, ain't that always the case?" I shrugged. "When you actually need sleep ta deal with stuff you usually end up lyin' awake all night. It's just the way it is."

"Indeed." He said, smiling again.

"Morning." Don said as he walked over, still looking half asleep himself.

"Then again I guess some people can sleep no matter how excited they are." I said, watching as Donny practically sleepwalked over to us and sat down.

"Hey, no making fun of me until I've had some coffee." Donny mumbled, lifting a finger pointedly.

"They ain't got coffee here. Only tea." I said, perfectly aware of the broad grin on my face.

Don gave a low groan as if I'd just killed his goldfish, rubbing at his eyes with his palms.

"We're gonna be a real lively bunch with the two of you lookin' like that." I said, looking back and forth between him and Usagi.

"If we are even granted an audience." Usagi said, turning to stare at the closed door of the inn gloomily. "With this weather they may not permit us to speak with any-one."

I said nothing, pulling a face to myself as I listened to the wind outside tug at the walls and roof. There was something that sounded like rain hitting the side of the building, probably snow getting thrown about and hitting the wall. I hoped it would clear up soon. I wanted to get to the bottom of this Nagahashi thing so we could carry on with our own problems. We didn't need things like the weather making more. I guess I should've been grateful it was only like this after we've already reached this town safely and not when we were on the road, but part of me couldn't help but think: 'Typical.'

Apparently we still had _some_ luck on our side though. By the time Leo came downstairs followed by a half asleep Mikey the storm outside seemed to clear up a little bit. We could still hear the wind but it wasn't nearly as bad as when I first woke up. It was still damn cold though and I caught myself constantly adjusting the silk around myself to keep properly covered. We weren't even outside yet and I felt like I was gonna get frost bite. Breakfast was made up of what I guess I should start calling 'the usual'; rice, some strange yellow vegetables that I didn't like but which Donny seemed to be kinda into, and these weird little fish that looked waaaay too fresh to me. I said nothing though and just ate what I got. Beggars can't be choosers and this was still Usagi's money we were spending. I didn't want throwing away food hovering over my conscious. Luckily when the yellow vegetables got too much for me I pawned them off on Donny and when the little fish staring at me grossed me out enough I discovered that Usagi was more than happy to take them off my hands and would finish them off as fast as I handed them over. The guy obviously likes his seafood. Gotta be honest, didn't really expect that from a rabbit.

Don seemed to have woken up now that he'd gotten something hot to drink. It wasn't coffee, but my guess was that the idea of getting to see inside this guy's palace was enough of an adrenaline rush to perk him up. Usagi also seemed to have managed to wake himself up a little more, but to be honest he's not the one I was worried about. The cold was getting worse, that much was obvious, and I was trying to keep tabs on who of my three bros were acting groggier than normal. We all seemed ok for the moment, but I made sure to remind myself to check every now and then. I know that Leo was doing the same thing, but it doesn't hurt to have more than one person on guard, especially when I know for a fact that Mikey's probably forgotten what cold can do to us and Donny's too preoccupied with his little science expedition to think about stuff like that.

Once we finished the food, Usagi gave us another run down on what to do when we talk to some-one in this palace thing. It was pretty straightforward really. Let him do the talking, don't say anything unless we're asked and just follow his lead. Sounded simple enough. I dunno why he seemed so uptight about it. I mean he was acting fine, but he was obviously worried we were gonna screw up if he's losing sleep over it.

We finally got up from the table and braced ourselves as we left the inn. It was frigid outside and the wind didn't help at all. I was kinda surprised to see it wasn't snowing. However it might as well have been since the wind was blowing around the loose snow that'd fallen last night which made the whole town look like it was covered in mist. It made it hard to see more than a few paces ahead of us. Luckily palaces tend to be kinda big so there wasn't much chance of us getting lost. The wind was a pain in the ass though. Not only was it turning my hands and face to ice but it was also tugging at the navy Kimono Usagi had given me as if it was purposefully trying to pull it off. I grumbled and tugged it tighter around myself again.

It wasn't that far to the palace but the going was slow, but we got there eventually. Usagi spoke to one of the guards at the main gate, telling him we'd met one of this Lord Nagahashi's messengers and wanted to talk to some-one official-like about what he said. The guard didn't seem to believe him, but he said he'd find some-one for us to talk to.

We followed him inside through the gate and down the wide path towards the impressively large tower, the one which seemed more dolled up than the others as far as architecture goes. I found myself staring upwards along its height as we approached it. The powdery snow being blown around by the wind made it so the details of the building got lost higher up, making the highest floors and roof nothing more but a grey silhouette against a white sky. There were a lot of armed guards around the place, but I guess that was pretty normal considering this was suppose to be the guy in charge of the whole territory or province or whatever they called these kinds of things. It could've been my imagination brought on by the cold and the snow and the gloominess of the scene, but all the guards here seemed overly serious. Maybe that was just for show or something to intimidate people so they don't do anything dumb, but even though I didn't know much about this place it didn't seem right to me. They all had hard eyes, as if they were expecting the world to end tomorrow or something. Their expressions seemed to range from threatening to sour to just plain depressing.

The large inner compound of the palace felt too quiet to me. But to be fair the look of the place and the guards were creeping me out, and I don't think the wind gave much chance for any sounds to carry across the wide-open space.

The guard who was leading us stopped to speak to a second guard for a moment. He then turned and marched off, leaving us with this new guy who led us inside the main building. The hallway we entered was large. I expected that, but I was kinda thrown off by how modest it seemed. I mean, I was expecting it to be kinda tacky, being a palace and all. You know, with murals painted on every wall and roof, large vases with who knows what plants in them, pillars painted red and covered in gold or something. Stuff like that. The hallway we walked through though didn't really give the impression of richness. The floor was made of a dark cherry-wood that felt very old and sturdy under my feet. The ceiling wasn't too high above us, but the wooden beams crossing over themselves above our heads made it feel dark and foreboding. Along the sides of the passage, perfectly symmetrical to each other, lamps had been lit, leading the way through the wood-panelled walls to the square doorway ahead of us.

There were no guards to be seen in the hallway... but I knew they were there. My trained senses could pick them up, sitting patiently behind hidden doors and panels. I could hear them breath, hear them shift as they listened to our footsteps walk past them. They seemed relaxed, obviously convinced we weren't gonna do anything suspicious, but they were alert.

My eyes flitted to Leo automatically and one look told me he knew they were there too. I noticed Mikey and Donny were also on their guards. I turned to catch a glimpse of Usagi, but I couldn't tell what he was thinking. Either he didn't know any-one was there which didn't seem likely since the guy could usually tell when a gnat beats its wings in the next room, or he knew there were hidden guards and just didn't care since it was probably a normal thing around here. I decided to keep my guard up, just in case he didn't realise how ridiculously outnumbered we were due to lack of sleep or something.

We were led into a large room. It had the now familiar tatami mat floor, and unlike the hallway its walls were made of paper as well as wood. This alone made it seem better lit than the hallway and I felt myself relaxing a bit. The wall on the opposite side of the room had a large, square, flat looking pillow on the ground, meant for sitting on as well as a rather elegant lamp in a corner and something that looked like a very tiny bench placed carefully next to the pillow. The guard led us a few paces in front of it before he told us to wait before he turned and disappeared again.

Usagi went to his knees and I notice him half-turn to make sure we did the same. I suppressed the urge to grumble. I hated sitting in this damned _senza_ position. Splinter made us do it too. I could handle it alright, but if I sat like this too long my knees locked up and it hurt like hell for a good half hour afterwards. Not that I'd ever complain to Splinter about it. He'd whap me clean outta my shell! And I knew whoever was gonna see us would do much worse. So I bit my tongue and sat, hoping this would go fast.

It wasn't long before a man entered the room. It was pretty obvious this wasn't a lord of any kind. He looked more like the bookish type than a battle-hardened lord. He had an elongated, clean looking face with high slanted eyes and the snout of his muzzle set rather low. His ears were small and pointed but arched backwards non-threateningly. He was a very soft pale-yellow colour and was wearing elegant navy, black and white robes. I noticed the _mon_ on the formal jacket he wore over his kimono and made sure to memorise it. Just in case.

It was the basic white circle in the centre of which was a black arch, like an upside-down U with two dashes going through it at a slight angle. One from the left and one from the right. I'm sure it was meant to be a simplified pictogram for something since I didn't recognise it as any kanji I knew, but I couldn't really figure out what it was suppose to be.

The man sat himself on the flat pillow in front of us, using the tiny bench to rest an arm on.

The man stared at us with an unreadable expression, turning to glance over each of us before his gaze settled on Usagi sitting in front of the rest of us and who, to be fair, was the only guy here with his own _mon_ on his kimono, signalling that he was a samurai. The guy was probably trying to figure out what the heck the rest of us were suppose to be as far as this whole feudal system goes.

"I am Iwasaki Taku." The man said after a short pause. "Envoy and representative for Lord Nagahashi. I have been told you came here from the southern border based on a meeting with one of my lord's messengers."

Usagi gave the man a sincere bow, leaning on his knuckles to do so. "Iwasaki-san. I am Miyamoto Usagi and these are my companions. We have come here because we have heard from Lord Nagahashi's messenger that he is looking to recruit capable fighting men for some endeavour he is embarking upon. We were not told the details, but since we are all _bushi_ with no loyalties at this time we though we might enquire about this a little further. If Lord Nagahashi is offering payment for able men we are more than willing to offer our services."

I did my best not to give Usagi a sideways glance. I wasn't sure how much of that he meant and how much was bullshit. The guy named Iwasaki frowned slightly at this, turning to slowly look over us again. Something Usagi said seemed to have triggered something.

"Who gave you this information?" Iwasaki asked with a careful tone of voice.

There was a pause as Usagi thought for a few moments. He then gave his head a slightly shake. "I must apologise. The messenger never formally introduced himself by name. He merely said that he was an envoy from Lord Nagahashi and that he had come to the temple we were seeking shelter at looking for warriors who might be interested in fighting for your Lord."

"And he did not specify the reason we might be looking for mercenaries?" Iwasaki asked, sounding slightly urgent for some reason.

Usagi shook his head again. "He claimed he was not privy to Lord Nagahashi's plans, but that it was for some private project. However, I prefer not to fight if I do not know what I am fighting for, so I thought it would be best to come here and learn a bit more."

Iwasaki said nothing at this, staring hard at Usagi as if trying to discern what the rabbit's true intentions were. Usagi wasn't put off though and stared right back.

"And that is all that you know." Iwasaki said.

Usagi gave a nod, although I wasn't sure it'd been a question. "Which is why we have travelled here."

"Mmm." Iwasaki nodded to himself, breaking his gaze from us for the first time as he slipped into thought, turning all this over in his head. I felt a slow frown spread on my face. This was getting weird. This guy seemed to be asking more questions than we were. What's more, was it really that strange for people to actually show up when you sent out a recruiting agent? If so maybe this Lord was in a worse situation than we realised. Then again, maybe he was just finding it weird that we'd travel so far when we hardly knew anything about what's going on. I gotta admit, if I was him I'd find that a little suspicious too.

Finally he straightened in his seat again and turned back to us, his face business-like again. "I fear you should have asked this so-called messenger for his name. Lord Nagahashi has not sent any messengers out in the manner that you speak of, nor is he looking for warriors_. _We have our own forces and have no need for mercenaries, as you have more than likely seen. If anything, I would have appreciated it if you could have told me the name of this impostor so that Lord Nagahashi might send a word of warning out to our neighbours of this lie." Iwasaki looked Usagi up and down again. "You are obviously _ronin_, Usagi-san, but you seem to have a little more sophistication about you than an average foot-solder. You do not strike me as some-one who would have been easily fooled by a fake. This troubles me as I am concerned about lies like these spreading to neighbouring Lords." He gave a small dip of his head. "I regret that you have travelled through this cold for nothing, but I must thank you for bringing this to our attention. I will be sure to alert Lord Nagahashi that such a rumour has been started in case others like yourself turn up. However, I am afraid we have nothing for you here."

Usagi said nothing for a few moments, staring quietly at the representative before he gave another bow. "We thank you for your attention Iwasaki-san, and we apologise for wasting your time."

And just like that we found ourselves getting up, turning around, and getting led away again. We were walked back through the hallway with its invisible guards, outside into the bitter cold, across the open compound and out the large front gates. It seemed to happen in a blur and suddenly, it was just the 5 of us again, walking through the snow and trying not to get blown over by the wind as we made our way back to the inn.

I realised I was gritting my teeth. "So what the hell was that about?"

The others turned to stare at me. "You're tellin' me we came all this way for nothin'?" I made an angry noise. "That's rich ain't it? I mean am I goin' crazy here? What the hell just happened?"

"Obviously, whoever showed up at the temple wasn't a real messenger." Donny said through chattering teeth.

"Why would any-one go around pretending to be a fake messenger?" Mikey said with a thoughtful frown. Well, thoughtful for Mikey at least. "I mean, that's a weird hobby to have isn't it? I mean we all gotta have our kicks but come on!"

"Maybe it's some-one's idea of a joke." Leo said with a dark tone of voice.

I scoffed loudly. "Kind of a sick joke if ya ask me! I mean exactly how much time and money did we waste on this little road trip huh? I tell ya if I ever find that fake messenger guy I'm gonna make him pay through the nose for this!"

"Ew! Dude, we don't need the graphic details!" Mikey pulled a face at me, sticking out his tongue.

"At least we got to see some interesting sights on the way." Don said optimistically. "I mean sure, this kinda sucks, but it wasn't a _complete_ loss."

"Says you." I snorted, kicking at a pile of snow angrily. "I say again, if I ever find that guy I'm gonna kick his ass six ways ta Sunday!"

"I agree." Leo said, causing me to almost trip over in surprise. "If this was just some kind of joke I think we should get the guy who sent us on this pointless mission to refund us."

"See? Even Leo's agreein' with me!" I said, turning to Don since he seemed to be the only one I could actually kinda argue with and vent this frustration. "You _know_ this is some serious bullshit when even Leo's wantin' revenge!"

"I didn't say that." Leo said calmly, raining on my parade. "I just think if we ever see him again he should pay us back for the pointless money we spent."

"Sounds like revenge to me." I growled.

"Well, at least one good thing came of this," Donny said, taking a double step to catch up with us. "At least we can put the issue to rest now."

"Yeah... I guess so..." I grumbled in defeat. I couldn't exactly argue with that.

"Hey. You ok Usagi?" Mikey's voice cut through the conversation. The three of us stopped, turning to look at the two stragglers.

Mikey was a few steps behind me, staring at Usagi who was falling behind. The rabbit was staring back at the palace as he walked. He made a small noise to himself as he turned to the front again, speeding up to regroup with us.

"Hey, we're all bummed." Mikey said, trying to sound sympathetic. "But like Donny said, at least we don't need to worry about it any more right? Cheer up!"

Usagi made a thoughtful noise, shaking his head. "I am not fully convinced..."

"Whadd'you mean?" I asked with a frown, turning to face him properly.

"He said that this messenger did not come from them, and yet he seemed very anxious to learn how much we were told before he said that what the messenger had said were lies." Usagi said, staring at the ground with a hard frown as if he was trying to sort it out in his own head. "It was almost as if he was afraid we had learned something he would rather stay a secret, and once he learned we knew nothing, dismissed us as quickly as possible." He shook his head. "And besides that, what possible motive would some-one have for spreading such a pointless rumour? There was no profit to be made, no ambush lying in wait for us during our journey, no real reaction from Lord Nagahashi's court that could benefit any-one. Why on earth would some-one spread such a lie?"

"Kicks?" Mikey shrugged.

"It's weird I agree." Leo nodded. "But it doesn't look like it's anything to worry about. Apart from draining your purse a little we haven't run into any real trouble, not on the road or at this palace. It was completely pointless I agree, but better pointless than a scam right?"

"This may be true..." Usagi said but he didn't sound convinced. "But I cannot help but feel the request for samurai was more than just the ramblings of a mad-man." He turned to look back at the palace again. "There is a mystery here..."

"Hey, Scooby-doo. Why don't ya let the conspiracy theories die and just accept that some people are just weird or crazy or both?" I grumbled, rubbing my arms to try and keep warm.

"Mmm." Usagi said.

There was a moment where no-one said anything. Usagi kept staring at the palace behind us, rooted to the spot. Eventually Leo took a few steps over to him.

"Let it go Usagi. Whatever the truth is, it's got nothing to do with any of us."

Usagi was silent for a few seconds before he gave a sigh, visibly deflating. "I suppose you are right."

Leo nodded. "Come on, before the wind picks up again."

We turned and walked back to the inn. I noticed that before he stepped inside, Usagi turned to stare behind him one last time. He then gave a short breath and went inside, frowning to himself softly as he did.

**Xxxxx**

_bushi – warrior class_


	21. Gossip and Magic

_I don't own TMNT or UY._

_Apparently FF dislikes double question marks. This irritates me._

_EDIT: FF also apparently dislikes question marks and exclamation points next to each other. This really makes me angry since it messes up the infliction I'm going for in certain sentences. Does any-one have any suggestion on how to either fix this or a substitute of some kind I could use?  
_

**Xxxxx**

I did not sleep well that night.

It seemed to be turning into a habit of sorts as I found myself continuously waking up from strange dreams lately. They were never overly disturbing and I never remembered them once I was properly awake apart from the unsettling feeling they left me with, but it was still an annoyance when I found myself waking up earlier than I needed to and was too restless to go back to sleep. So far however, it had only happened now and again with a good number of days in between where I was able to sleep like the dead. This was the first time I woke up from a dream the second night in a row.

The previous night I had put it down as unease as to what Lord Nagahashi's envoy might say. I had been worried that we were getting involved with something that a small group of people like us had no hope of standing up against. I was still unconvinced that there wasn't something strange happening within those palace walls regarding this situation and the strange messenger who had appeared out of nowhere, but my worries had been tamed and I'd been sure that I could rest easy tonight, confident that there was nothing to be overly concerned about.

This was not the case. I fell asleep just fine, but as I slept I could feel an anxiety growing within me. A sort of primordial fear, as you would feel when you're half asleep and lying alone in the dark, plagued by inventive but unnerving images that your imagination seemed to be toying with. I could feel myself drift in and out of sleep, one moment aware of the subtle sounds and darkness of the room I was in and the next lost to my own mind.

Eventually, fatigue won out and I fell properly asleep, but this did not help. If anything it made matters worse as pure sleep brought about proper dreams which I could not escape from so easily.

Tonight was the first time some recollection of what I had been dreaming about stayed with me as I woke up. The memory was shattered into fragments as soon as I opened my eyes, but I could recall that I had dreamt about myself as well as another person, or perhaps it had been several people. I think we had been discussing something, or we might have been listening to some-one saying something to us, or perhaps I had been a witness to a conversation between two other people. I could not remember. As soon as I tried to piece the memory together I became frustrated and lost track of what I could really remember and what I was making up to fill in the gaps of logic.

Regardless though, I remember that whoever the conversation had been between, the topic was something that, for some reason, I felt a little repulsed by. I could not clearly remember my emotions towards the speaker though. The memory was confused on whether I felt frightened of them, angry at their presence, or if I felt a certain degree of affection for them. When I woke up there was a strange sadness clutching at my heart, and I felt reluctant to go back to sleep.

I had not slept as much as I should have the night before and I could feel fog in my head, signalling that I hadn't slept enough tonight either.

I wrestled with myself for a few moments before I gave in and sat up. I gave a sigh, running a hand through the fur on my head as I stared at the hills and valleys created by the blanket over my knees. It was still dark, but the thin, cool sting of the air seemed to suggest that sunrise was not far away. It was that awkward time where you have woken up too early to do anything, but going back to sleep would be futile as you would need to be awake in a few short hours anyway.

I shared a room with the four turtle brothers which may have made the room slightly stuffy, but it also helped keep it warmer than it would have been otherwise. But I did not feel like sitting in the dark waiting for them to wake up. I got up, got dressed and made my way downstairs. I did not know whether the innkeeper or his wife would be awake yet, but I felt no harm could come from me lighting a lamp and waiting for my travelling companions to wake up.

The wind had died, and in the silence of the early morning I could almost trick myself into thinking I could hear the soft fall of snowflakes outside, but it was more than likely just my imagination. Once every-one was awake we needed to check the weather and assess when and how we intended to travel back to Sanshobo's temple. Once there we would be right back where we started; trying to find a way for the four brothers to return home somehow.

I rubbed at my face. I was sure there was another way we could approach the problem and get them home, but the answer eluded me. And the more I thought about it the more frustrated and hindered I felt. I gave a sigh, crossing my arms over the top of the table and rested the side of my face against them, staring at the wall beside me as I tried to think of how I could approach this problem differently.

I felt as if I was trying to bore a hole through a stone wall with a woman's hairpin. I wished rather childishly that there was some-one I could ask for help. Some-one who might provide us with an easy answer and I would no longer have to wrack my head trying to come up with a solution on my own. Yes, Leonardo and his brothers were trying to think of something as well, but I still felt as if the responsibility fell on me as their guide and friend. I knew more of this world and its workings than they did.

I felt as if we had been swept up by a river, but instead of being washed out to the ocean we had been caught in an endless maelstrom which was spinning us around and around, overpowering and overwhelming us with its waves, with no-one who could throw a life line to pull us free. The situation seemed to be becoming more and more hopeless, and I felt as if I was drowning.

"Hey? Usagi?"

I jumped as I realised a hand was on one of my shoulders that wasn't my own. I hadn't even been aware of any-one coming into the room, let alone coming close enough to touch me.

I blinked my eyes back into focus to see who was there. The person had been surprised when I'd sat upright so sharply, but now stared back at me with a concerned frown, relaxing again.

"You ok?" Leonardo asked.

I nodded, rubbing at an eye. The corners of Leonardo's mouth pulled slightly as he watched me. He then rounded the table and sat down opposite me, not breaking his eye-contact. I gave my head a slight shake, hoping to gather my senses a little better before I tuned to stare back at him.

"You startled me." I said.

"I dunno how." Leonardo frowned at me. "I think I called you twice before you reacted."

I felt the skin on my cheeks grow hot in embarrassment as I gave a sheepish laugh, a nervous habit I seem to have. "I must have dozed off."

"Either that or you were completely comatose." Leonardo said with a lopsided grin, although he still looked concerned. "What's wrong? Couldn't you sleep?"

I was feeling too groggy to try and give a long explanation so I merely nodded. "I seem to have come down with a bad case of insomnia recently."

Leonardo made a wincing noise. "Sounds like fun."

"Not exactly what we need if I am to lead us back to Sanshobo's temple." I said, straightening in my seat.

Leonardo gave a thoughtful nod at this, biting his bottom lip as his gaze drifted downwards. He then looked up at me again, focusing back on the present. "Well, it's not gonna help if you keel over on us. I guess we'll put it off for another day until you actually manage to get some sleep." a smile spread on his face. "Sleep in a bed that is. Not ontop of a table."

I pulled a face, but I felt very grateful for his compassion. I had half a mind to go back upstairs and try to get an extra hour's sleep before we discuss what we should do from this point, but I knew I couldn't do so. The other three would be awake soon and no doubt anxious to know what we were planning.

"Are you still worried about this Nagahashi guy?" Leonardo asked conversationally.

I frowned at him slightly. "No more than I was yesterday. Why do you ask?"

He shrugged. "I'm just wondering if that's maybe what kept you up."

I made a thoughtful noise to myself. "I suppose it is possible... but I doubt it."

"Really?" Leonardo pulled a face. "Why?"

I made a frustrated noise. I didn't feel like giving him the full story, but I knew if I tried to avoid the subject he would keep prying until his worries were calmed and that would end up being a lot more taxing than simply telling him. "I think perhaps I am overly concerned on how to get you and your brothers home."

Leonardo blinked at me, seemingly surprised by this. "...You're _that_ worried about it?"

I shook my head. "Not so much worried as frustrated. I keep feeling there is a simple answer and in my desperation I am searching for complicated solutions when the key to getting you home is ingeniously straightforward."

"I agree this whole thing sucks hard." Leonardo said, staring at me with a reproachful frown. "But you shouldn't let it get to you so badly that its keeping you up at night."

I made a meaningless noise at this. "It is not intentional, I assure you."

"Hey guys!" a much too cheerful voice greeted us as Mikey walked over, smiling at Leonardo and me.

"Oh hey." Leonardo said. "You're up early for...you know... ...you."

"Geez! I haven't even sat down yet and you're already starting with me!" Mikey said with a frown as he did so. "I'm just itching to get going is all!" The frown immediately changed itself into a grin. "I figured since we got this whole Naga-whatever mess sorted out we should be good to go back to the temple right?"

Leonardo and I exchanged glances. I wasn't sure what to say.

Leonardo turned back to Mikey. "Actually, we think we're gonna take an extra night before we head back."

"Aww, really? Why?" Mikey said with an obvious pout.

Leonardo seemed unsure about how to answer before he said; "We just got here the day before yesterday. I think we should take an extra day just to catch our breath before we hit the road again."

I breathed a silent sigh in relief.

Mikey seemed disappointed but apparently accepted the answer. "I guess that makes sense." He smiled again. I was getting dizzy watching him go back and forth with his emotions. "So what're we talking about? You guys seemed to be having a pretty deep conversation when I walked in."

Leonardo sighed. "Just the usual stuff. What do we do now. How the heck do we get home." he gave a shrug. "Nothing new."

"Is that all you guys ever talk about?" Mikey said, pulling a face of what looked like honest annoyance. "You're getting boring talking about the same things over and over again."

"Yeah well, if we could figure something out I'd more than happy to talk about something else Mikey." Leonardo said, halfway between amusement and annoyance.

"Arggh." Mikey made an irritated noise, rocking in his seat. "Can't we pay some-one to do all this figuring out stuff _for _us? At least then we could use our time to do other stuff that doesn't bore the creamy nougat centre outta me!"

"Hey, if you know of any-one be my guest." Leo chuckled. "Until then we're on our own."

"It is funny." I said, leaning back slightly. "I was thinking more or less the same thing a short while ago. Except I was wishing we could ask some-one for help rather than have them do everything _for_ us."

"Like asking for directions or something?" Mikey asked, scrunching his muzzle slightly. "Only girls ask for directions Usagi!"

I laughed slightly. "No. More like some-one who would actually know more about this sort of thing than us."

"Like who?" Mikey asked, staring at me with large eyes.

I ran a hand over my face. "No-one. I was merely feeling frustrated and amused myself with the idea."

"Aw man. Why you gotta build my hopes up like that?" Mikey said disappointedly.

"Come on Mike. You weren't actually expecting there'd be some-one here who'd know about stuff like portals and things did you?" Leonardo said with a smile.

Mikey gave a shrug. "Why not? Usagi and Gen know don't they? There's gotta be other people who do too right?"

"I guess so..." Leonardo said although he sounded reluctant to accept this possibility.

"We know how to use them," I said, feeling I needed to prevent any misunderstandings on this topic. "But we do not in actuality know how they work. We know as much as you do really."

"So don't you guys have like... portal experts or something?" Mikey pressed. "Like some-one who'd actually know more about all this other dimension and travelling back and forth between them and stuff?"

I shook my head. "I have never heard of such a thing."

"Oh come on! There's gotta be some-one!" Mikey whined. "I mean aren't there things like people who specialises in er... creepy crud?"

"Like what exactly?" Leonardo asked with a confused frown.

"You know." Mikey said, turning to focus on him. "Portals, other dimensions, ghosts, demons, Summoning monsters to do their bidding... you know! Typical magic stuff!"

Something clicked inside my head.

"Sounds like you've been playing waaaay too many video games Mikey." Leonardo rolled his eyes at him.

"How?" Mikey retorted with a sulk. "In case you haven't noticed they don't exactly have the newest Xbox here! If anything I'm in withdrawal!" He stared at the ceiling wistfully. "First thing I'm gonna do when I get back is a serious game marathon! Something with lots of gore and-"

"Say that again!" I said, standing from my seat slightly. I could feel a plan trying to form itself in the back of my head and was afraid that if we veered from the conversation it would vanish.

Mikey blinked in confusion. "Say what? Xbox?" He put his hands on the table, tracing the imaginary boundary of what looked like a box. "See it's a big square thing like this-"

I shook my head hurriedly. "No no before that!"

He frowned at me. "What? Creepy crud?"

I nodded, feeling the urgency rise in me. "Yes! What did you say?"

Mikey rubbed his chin in an melodramatic display of thought. "I said other dimensions, summoning demons.. ..uhm.. ..I think I said something about monsters." He gave a shrug. "Just... ordinary magic stuff."

I dropped my gaze, scanning the top of the table unseeingly as I tried to wrestle and pin down the thought that had struck me, trying to deconstruct it.

"Is something wrong Usagi?" I heard Leo's voice ask.

I shook my head, standing upright. "Not at all! In fact, I think I may have come up with an idea!"

"About what?" Mikey stared at me with a confused expression. "Getting home?"

"Yes!" I nodded, thinking it over again franticly.

"_What?_" Leonardo got up at this, rounding the table to stand next to me. "What? How?"

"I am thinking!" I said, afraid I might break the plan forming in my head. However, I was pretty confident it might actually be something that could help us. I turned my focus back on Leonardo. "I think I might know something we can do to find out how to get you home."

"So tell us already!" Mikey blurted out impatiently, standing up too. "C'mon, spit it out!"

"We are going to ask some-one for help." I said, frowning slightly as I though it over once again, calming down enough so that some more troubling realities starting entering my head.

"Wow. That's.. ..anti-climactic." Mikey said, sitting down again.

"Wait a minute!" Leonardo interrupted, his energy still running high. "Usagi, what d'you mean we're gonna ask for help? Who on earth's gonna help us with something like this?"

"Some-one who specialises in, as Mikey-kun put it, 'creepy things'." I said, turning to him. "We need one who is adept in _maho_."

They both stared at me dumbly.

"'_Maho'." _Leonardo repeated. "You mean magic?"

"Yes." I curled a hand around my chin, thinking it over again, a little calmer this time. "Although in all honesty, I am not overly keen on sorcery. However I do believe we have reached a stage where we can not afford prejudice to stop us from exploring any opportunity we can think of to get you home."

"So what're you gonna do? Call up Glinda the Good Witch or something?" Mikey asked.

I frowned at him. "Who?"

"Ignore him." Leonardo said, waving a hand in Mikey's direction as if to shoo him. "But seriously. You're really thinking of trying to find some-one to just zap us home with magic?"

My frown deepened as I looked back and forth between them. "Of course not. It does not work that way. But we could at the very least ask why you are unable to open a doorway back home. That will give us some answers and a starting point we can work from."

"Yeah but who're you gonna ask?" Mikey piped up again. "I mean, are ya just gonna go find the local fortune-teller or something?"

"No of course not." I said, rubbing my forehead in frustration. I was too tired for this lack of understanding. "We will need some-one who is in tune with the spirit world. A crone. But I am not sure where we could find such a thing."

"This is starting to sound a little ridiculous." Leonardo said with an aggravated sigh.

"Well I say we go for it!" Mikey said with a bright, hopeful smile.

"Let me see if I can find any word of some-one with those kinds of gifts being in the area." I said, turning to Leonardo. "It may be futile, but it is the closest we have come to having a real plan."

Leonardo frowned quietly to himself before he sighed in defeat. "I guess so. But I'm not sure I like the idea."

"Oh I am completely against it." I said cheerfully, smiling at him. "But it is the first thing I have thought of that sounds even remotely possible of helping us."

"Or we could all end up as frogs." Mikey said thoughtfully.

I laughed at this. "Hags do not turn people into frogs!" I sat back down at the table. "They eat you."

"Oh is that all." Mikey said, pulling a face at me as he paled slightly.

I had made the suggestion of trying to speak with a witch literally as the idea had hit me, not taking time to sit back and fully think the option over before I let Leonardo and Mikey know what I was thinking. In retrospect this was perhaps a very bad idea. I myself am more or less against _maho_ and sorcery. In all of my experiences, it has only ever lead to trouble and, in some cases, serious injury on my part. Experience has taught me that of all the things that are to be avoided in this world, sorcery, ghosts and _obakemono _are at the very top of the list. I should have thought this over more thoroughly before I said anything, but it was too late now and having made the suggestion, I couldn't turn around and decide not to go through with it. I would of course, try and find out if any such a person exists near the town and if they do I will dutifully let Leonardo and his brothers know, but I was half hoping that I wouldn't find anything.

It was not only self-preservation that made me reluctant to seek out a witch or _yama-uba, _but I was also concerned it might end up causing more harm than good for my friends. But, I have never been one to let fretting and anxiety prevent me from doing something that might prove to be useful. If you let hesitance rule your life you will never end up making any kind of progress or achievement.

The truth remains that a hag might be able to provide us with an answer, and that is something I feel my friends were desperately owed. If there were consequences to this I would take them upon myself as this was my idea and at the end of the day, my fault if anything should go wrong.

I said none of this to either Leonardo or Mikey though as the topic drifted to more pleasant things that did not involve unsettling powers or cannibalistic monsters. I said very little, but I enjoyed watching the eldest and youngest brothers' interaction with each other. Being part of an active conversation was keeping me awake and helped pull me out of my weariness so that I could work my way through the rest of the day without being groggy. I have done more on much less sleep during circumstances much more dire than this. I would be fine.

After some time Raphael joined us and not to long after him, Donatello came down as well. By this stage we were not the only group awake and the downstairs was starting to bustle and become quite lively with other patrons who were looking for a meal to start their day.

Raphael and Donatello both seemed fine with the idea of us spending another night here which I was relieved about. I was even more relieved that they didn't seem concerned enough to question why. Truth be told I felt I was more than capable of leading us back as it was, but with nothing to rush us I was more than happy to recharge and lead us back to Sanshobo's temple when I felt more rested.

However, one thing I was not eager to discuss with Raphael and Donatello... particularly Raphael, was this new plan of searching for a witch to give us some insight on how to get them home. Call it a hunch, but I was pretty sure Raphael would have something to say about that, and I really did not feel like arguing with him. So, I tactfully excused myself, not even waiting for food before I left the inn and decided to see where would be a good place to look for gossip and rumours.

The weather was much better today. It was almost sunny and the wind had died. I don't think it had snowed the night before either. It was, I had to admit, perfect weather for travelling. I wandered the streets of the town, staying closer to the commoner's district, hoping that they would have looser tongues than the autocracy although I wasn't sure how eager they would be to share gossip with some-one of a higher class such as myself. But perhaps I could find some-one who was a traveller such as myself and would be willing to divulge some information.

I was content walking through the town for a while though, even if nothing came of this little venture. I was pretty sure I had travelled through this part of the country at some stage, but I had never visited this town or its surrounding lands before. The province itself was small and it was north of the Geishu lands.

If given the choice, I would most certainly _always_ choose to travel through the Geishu lands. For various reasons.

The town seemed all in all pleasant as far as towns go. I had no doubt it had its share of problems, but the people did not seem miserable or hungry and it was clear this Lord Nagahashi was providing for them. There was a rather large presence of samurai, all bearing the arched _mon_ of Lord Nagahashi but other than that it seemed as normal as any other city I've seen.

I knew better than to try and speak to a samurai serving the lord though, and instead tried to see if I could find any _ronin_. Luck was with me as I found a rather tall, sturdy looking man who seemed eager for some company. Especially company who would pay for a drink.

Once we got some _sake_ involved in the conversation I asked him if he'd seen anything strange in the woods around these parts, not really expecting much. Or perhaps _hoping_ not to hear much. To my surprise however, I got the exact opposite reaction.

"Where do I start?" The man said as he took a swig from the _sake _jug. "According to the peasants the woods around these parts are crawling with all kinds of strange things in the night!"

"Really? I didn't know that." I said, careful of how much I let myself believe whatever it is he was about to tell me.

He nodded enthusiastically, wiping his mouth with the back of his arm. "Oh yes! Nothing big of course. No overly violent _obake_ or ghosts, but certainly strange things." He pointed with the jug of alcohol in the direction of the city's wall. "When I was approaching the town when I first arrived the sun was just setting. I knew for a fact that I saw strange lights among the trees, trying to lure me away from the road and deeper into the forest."

"Fox-fires?" I asked with a light frown.

The man nodded. "Maybe. I didn't trust them and kept to the road so I didn't investigate. But I've heard the locals here talk about similar things stalking them at night recently, although you never know how much you can trust the talk of peasants. Superstitious lot that they are."

I nodded, turning away from the wall and back to him. "But that's all there is around here?"

"Don't drop your guard that easily." The man said, waving the jug at me as if to scold me like a child. "The strange lights are the only thing I can give you a personal account on, but I've heard all kinds of strange things. I've heard peasants who say they've actually _seen_ foxes in the woods."

I pulled a grim face. I'd rather not get involved in anything to do with those creatures if I could help it.

"But it doesn't stop there." the man went on casually. "There're stories of a young woman who lures who she can into the woods where she will kill and devour them. Some of the locals claim she's a vicious monster in disguise who reveals her true form before she does so."

"Sounds like typical superstitious nonsense to me." I said, not believing this story for a second. "I suppose when something as mundane as lights in the woods is all there is people feel a need to over-dramatize everything."

"Maybe." the man shrugged, still nursing his _sake_. "But I suppose that's how it is. People will talk. I haven't heard anything to really support this woman story though. But people around this area seem content to listen and concoct macabre stories to tell each other. I've heard a few tales about Lord Nagahashi's palace itself being haunted."

"That is going a bit far isn't it?" I said, pulling a face at this.

"I guess so yes." The man said. I noticed the _sake_ jar was getting tilted back further and further. His drink was almost finished. "But then can you really blame them? Ever since Lord Nagahashi's son died the whole town seems to be eager to spread the morbidity."

I blinked, surprised at this. "Lord Nagahashi's son is dead?"

The man frowned at me. "You haven't heard?"

I shook my head. "I arrived in town about 2 days ago."

The man relaxed again and nodded in understanding. "You're obviously not from around here then. Lord Nagahashi's son, Fuyuki, died about 2 months ago from a horrific illness. I believe the boy had been sick for a little under 2 weeks before he finally passed away. Very sad business that. He couldn't have been older than 10."

Somewhere inside me I felt an uncomfortable chord being struck at this. I did not really want to hear about little boys dying and leaving behind grieving fathers.

"That is a tragic event." I nodded. "I was not aware of this."

The man nodded again. "Apparently it's sparked all kinds of rumours and gossip. I've even heard some of the commoners blame a _yama-uba_ living in the woods. However I've never heard of any such thing being around these parts. I think they're just trying to find something to blame for the tragedy."

I blinked, suddenly reminded of why I was having this conversation in the first place. "They say there is a crone in these woods?"

"That's what they say." The man said, pulling a disgusted face at this. "But who knows if its true. She's suppose to live in a small shack by the river where the rapids are. They claim she's responsible for several people going missing in that area, but from what I can tell that terrain is very dangerous already. It's easy to fall and get hurt. And in this weather you know you'll either freeze to death or hungry _tokage_ will take advantage of the situation."

I nodded in agreement, although I wasn't so quick to write off the possibility of a witch being in the nearby woods just yet. That she was the cause of sickness though, I highly doubted.

"Well, I need to be on my way." the man said, putting the now empty jug back in my hands, leaving me to decide what to do with it. "Thanks for the drink pal. If you come across anything strange let me know."

I smiled at him as I adjusted my hand on the jug, finding the rope tied around its neck so I could carry it better. "I will, although I do not think there is anything out there really." I lied.

"There are strange lights out there." the man said. "That much I can guarantee you."

"Well I thank you for the information." I said.

He nodded, turning to walk away. "Good luck. _Abayo._"

I watched him walk off before I raised the empty jug, pulling a face at it. What was I suppose to do with this?

I walked back to the inn, leaving the empty jug on top of a water barrel in an alley as I went. As I made my way through the town's streets, dodging hawkers and people as I went. I was surprised to see a very large crowd lined along the main road leading from the palace's gates to the gates of the town's wall. I frowned, walking closer to see what was going on.

a Procession of what was obviously Lord Nagahashi's soldiers were making their way through the town. Some were on horseback but they had already exited the town's gates and were seen making their way along the road, across the small field that separated the town from the woods. Most of the men passing us were common foot-soldiers, but every now and then the small group of men would be broken up by a handful of gunmen. Eventually a palanquin passed by although it was not as heavily guarded as it could have been, signalling that the person it was carrying was one of importance, but most certainly not the lord himself.

The procession was small as far as these things go and it passed quickly, disappearing across the field and in between the trees.

"What was that about?" I asked the person nearest to me; a noodle seller, carrying his wares on his back.

"Not sure." the older man said. He sounded rather blasé about the event. "Every few days a small troop of Lord Nagahashi's men leave the city and disappear into the woods. Lord Nagahashi hasn't made anything public though, so really it's none of our business how our Lord operates."

"Who was in the palanquin?" I asked curiously.

"A member of the court." the noodle seller said, turning away rather rudely, obviously eager to get back to his daily business. "Don't concern yourself too much samurai. It's become an average sight around here and nothing serious has come of it. Lord Nagahashi's probably just distributing troops to the rural countryside more evenly. I hear there's been a lot more incidences involving bandits along the northern coast."

"Mmm." I said, frowning deeply to myself. I did not fully trust a humble noodle seller's opinion on politics.

I turned to stare back at the Lord's palace for a few moments before I continued back to the inn, my suspicion from last night returning in full force. There was definitely something strange going on. But it would have to wait.

Once I entered the inn I became aware of how chilly it'd really been outside and gave a shudder. Leonardo was still sitting at the table as he had been earlier this morning, but the other three had disappeared, probably to take advantage of the good weather while they could.

Leonardo smiled at me, standing up when I came over. "Any luck?"

"I suppose so." I said. "A lot of hearsay and rumours... but how much of it is reliable remains to be seen."

"Ok." He frowned slightly at this, but didn't seem overly concerned. "Anything you yourself feel good about?"

"Apparently," I said. "there are rumours of a crone in the woods near the stream by the rapids, but it could be nothing more than a way to explain the disappearance of people who wander that area and fall in the water or get killed by animals."

"Worth checking out though right?" Leo said with a smile. "I mean it's the best lead you have, obviously."

"Yes." I said, feeling my initial reluctance to this endeavour return. "However, I think perhaps it would be best if I first go and scout out the area and see how reliable this rumour is."

Leo's frown became hard-set. "By yourself? And fall in the water or get killed by animals?"

I rolled my eyes at this but couldn't help but laugh slightly. "No. I intend to be a little more cautious than that."

"Yeah right." Leonardo scoffed. "Look, you know I'm gonna follow you whether you like it or not so-"

"No!" I said, a little too forcefully. "No I... I would prefer it if you didn't."

Leonardo frowned again. "Why not? Look I'm good on my feet, I won't go drowning on you. And I'm sure the two of us could fight off-"

"It is not that." I said, shaking my head.

He pulled a face, obviously getting confused. "Then what's the problem?" He smiled. "Getting sick of me?"

I shook my head again, not wanting to be disarmed by his lightheartedness. "I am just uncomfortable about this plan."

"You were the one who suggested it." Leonardo pointed out.

"Yes, and I am rather unsure whether I should have." I sighed.

"Well, no point crying over something you've already done." Leonardo shrugged. "Besides, I think we've already established you've been stressing over things harder than you should be lately. Do yourself a favour and relax ok? Besides, with two of us we can watch each other's backs. It'll be safer than you going off to what you just said was a dangerous area by yourself." He gave a small laugh suddenly. "Why do I feel like we keep having this same conversation over and over again?"

"Probably because you are a very stubborn guy." I said, grinning at him. "Or... I am a stubborn guy. I cannot tell which it is." I became serious again. "But back to the topic at hand; I do not think all five of us looking for a crone's shack will be a good idea."

Leonardo shook his head. "No worries there. Raph's made it pretty clear he doesn't like this idea one little bit. He refuses to go anywhere near some-one who can do magic."

I blinked, honestly surprised. Not that Raphael was against the plan, but that he felt strongly enough to exclude himself from this whole thing entirely. "What about Donatello-san and Mikey-kun?"

"Well... Mikey obviously doesn't like the idea of seeing what he calls a 'witch'. He's complaining and whining but I can tell he really is scared of the idea. I'm not gonna force him to do something he doesn't have to. Donny didn't say if he'd go or not. I dunno. He might go either way. I can see him wanting to check this out for himself, but on the other hand Don's a lot more interested in solid facts. I don't think magic's something he'd want to be part of." He shrugged. "We'll ask him and see."

I nodded. I was relieved to hear at least Raphael and Mikey were excluded from this rather foolish plan. I hoped Donatello would sit it out as well. I really didn't want them to get involved in anything with a _yama-uba_ and foxes and strange lights in the forest. I would've preferred it if Leonardo stayed out of this as well, but I knew better than to try and talk him out of it.

"Where are your brothers by the way?" I asked, looking around the inn.

"Don said something about wanting to take a walk around town. Raph said he wanted to get away from me and my, quote, 'batshit crazy ideas' for a while. Mikey followed one of them but I'm not sure who." He seemed unconcerned. "They'll be fine. Let 'em cool off for a while and get some air while they can. Before we all get cabin fever and kill each other."

I nodded, half-turning to the door of the inn. "For all intents and purposes, they seem to be coping well with all of this."

"Don't be so sure." Leonardo said grimly, taking my cue and walking to follow me out of the building. "They're holding it together but it's obvious they're getting edgy about this place. Raph in particular."

"I admit Raphael-san has been acting more aggressive than usual, but he did not strike me as being overly anxious about this situation." I said.

"Oh trust me. He's getting sick of not being able to go home. I dunno if it's because he misses Master Splinter or if it's simply because he's frustrated, but I'm not gonna ask."

"At least the two young ones are being cheerful." I said, trying to veer the conversation away from anything unpleasant.

"Er... yeah. No luck there either." Leonardo said.

"What?" I turned to blink at him. "But they seem fine."

"Oh yeah they _seem_ fine." Leonardo said. "But you don't know them like I do. Donny's keeping himself busy with his little research project, but I'm starting to think he's just using that as a way to keep himself busy. Don's the tech-whiz of our family and, to be perfectly blunt, there's absolutely nothing here that's even close to the kind of things he likes to tinker around with at home. I'm starting to think he's just gathering information as much as he is to stop himself from going nuts. As for Mikey, he's probably holding up the best out of us but I think he's getting skittish and eager to go home."

I felt a weight in my chest at hearing this although I hid it from Leonardo. "Then I am mistaken." I said simply.

"No problem. How're you suppose to know right?" He said, smiling at me.

I smiled back, but it was a hollow mask. I was still very against my own idea, but it seems that tracking down this crone might be the only option we had at the moment. I knew the four brothers were anxious to get home, but I hadn't noticed these subtleties Leonardo was talking about. I was just going to have to swallow my nervousness and see this witch. And of course refuse to let Leonardo out of my sight when we go looking for her. I didn't want another missing person added to the list.

**Xxxxx**

_Maho – Sorcery_

_Yama-Uba – 'Mountain witch'._

_Obakemono – haunts_


	22. Maho

_I don't own TMNT or UY_

_This is a long one. :) just thought I'd warn you._

**Xxxxx**

I stared longingly at an old man standing by a cart and calling out to passers by. His cart was well stocked with some simple but still elegant looking bowls which he was trying to sell to whoever seemed interested enough. I was standing too far for him to notice me, and so I escaped a sales pitch. I sighed sadly, feeling the weight of my empty pockets as I turned and walked away.

There were all kinds of things that I was more than eager to take a look at while I could. I dunno how many towns we've walked through sine we got here, but it was always while we were on the way to somewhere else. I have no idea why Leo and Usagi decided to take an extra day but I wasn't gonna question it. I was scared that if I did they'd suddenly realise there was no need to stay or something and we'd immediately travel back to Sanshobo's.

Not that that would be terrible. I'd like to tell the friends I've made there about the things I'd seen around here and what I thought about them. I wasn't really sure they'd care since this is just every day stuff for them, but the younger priests at the temple seemed to find my enthusiasm about this place amusing, and it gave me an excuse to just ramble for a few minutes and unload. None of my brothers were really eager to hear what I had to say and I know that this wasn't something I could talk to my friends online with once I got home, as much as I'd like to. Heaven knows there are some interesting theories I'd like to discuss, or more accurately, correct, regarding feudal Japanese culture. But I couldn't do that without any proof to back myself up. Maybe Master Splinter will be willing to listen to me when I get back. I hope so.

I really wanted to go home. I was starting to get frustrated with this place. As much as I loved the invaluable knowledge and first hand experience I was getting, I felt more than a little annoyed by the fact that there was nothing I would really be able to _do_ with all this information. Not without putting either Usagi or my family in danger. Not to mention that while I was here, there was nothing I could do to keep myself busy either. I'm pretty good with my electronics and computers and I have a little bit of experience as far as science goes, but that was hundreds of years still in the making. I mean sure, I'm interested in other things like history, biology, sociology and cultural study, but those are just things I have a passing interest in. Mechanics, Electronics and computers are where my real passions lay, and there was nothing like that here. There wasn't even something for a substitute. All that I could do here was gather pointless information which wasn't going to serve any purpose.

The whole thing made me feel... very useless. And this was a new and unfamiliar feeling for me.

Don't get me wrong, feelings of inadequacy and low self esteem are not exactly foreign to me, I don't think there's any-one alive who hasn't felt a little pathetic now and then. But this was something different. I mean, I'm the guy who helped rig up electricity in our sewer home when I was like 5. I'm the guy who re-routed pipes to give us fresh water and heating and other basic necessities. Not to mention I'm the guy who developed and built not only the shell-cells, but also the frequency on which they operate. I'm also the guy who frankensteined together all our vehicles. I'm the 'go to guy'. I'm the mechanic, the plumber, the electrician and the tech-support.

Here I was nothing. I was 'the quiet one' who pointlessly drew in a little book the whole time and probably came across as kinda strange to the locals. All four of us did, that much I was sure of, but the others at least had a role to fill which the local people here could recognize. Mikey as the moral support and/or constant annoyance as is the role of all little brothers everywhere, Raph as the protector and aggressive fighter and Leo as the level-headed leader trying to play ringmaster with the rest of us. That left me as... what? I don't even know. It was just really time to go home.

I was hoping that this rather strange idea of looking for a witch would help, although every logical bone in my body was screaming at how ridiculous this whole idea was. I mean, witches and magic and voodoo like that? Please.

Nevertheless, I wanted to go home badly enough to go along with this for a little while, especially if it actually led to something. I don't mind being proven wrong as long as it actually helps us.

I woke up from my musings and looked around when I realised I'd been walking aimlessly for the last few minutes and didn't know where I was. I found myself close to the castle gates again with Lord Nagahashi's palace towering over me. Although the sun was weak, it still made it an impressive sight and the amazing details and intricacies of the carved wooden beams of the roof were much easier to see and marvel at. I was astounded at how any-one could create such smooth, complicated shapes and curves with nothing but their hands and some crude instruments. For a few moments I wondered if that would've been what I'd gotten into if I was born in a timeline like this instead of modern New York city. Maybe I'd have become a craftsman, dealing with complicated plans for buildings and the designs that went into making them. I'm not much of an artist, but I could easily see myself holding a tool and working out how to cut a piece of tree into a usable beam for a detailed roof like this.

I lowered my gaze, turning to look at the gate instead. There were still guards stationed at it but I would've been surprised if there wasn't. I'd heard there was a small procession of guards along with some or other important person, but I'd been too far away from the main road to see it and by the time I got there it was already over. I'd been disappointed. That's something I would've liked to see.

I wasn't really sure why some-one of the court would be trekking around the country-side in winter though, especially not with an overly large armed guard. I mean I know you gotta be protected and stuff if you're important, but I couldn't help but weigh this scenario against what I'd heard Leo and Usagi say about the strange messenger who'd told them of some or other plan Nagahashi had which required fighting men. I know we were turned away and told there was nothing happening here, but it seemed a little fishy to me that there'd be a procession of armed men going who-knows-where right after we were told there was nothing out of the ordinary happening in this town. I dunno, maybe Usagi was being a bad influence on me or something, but I had to agree with him. Something weird was going on.

I sighed and shrugged to myself, turning to try and find my way back to the inn. On the other hand Leo was right too. This didn't really have anything to do with us, and what were the five of us gonna do against a guy who's got a whole army to back him up anyway? If there was something going on though, I hoped it was nothing big and would fix itself on its own. I had half a mind to put our ninja training to good use and infiltrate his palace just to see for myself what was going on, but I knew for a fact that if the guards didn't kill me, Leo definitely would.

Speak of the devil, I spotted him and Usagi walking down the street ahead of me, obviously more interested in their conversation than the town. I wondered if Usagi'd managed to find anything out about a hag being around here and decided to try and catch up with them. Just because I thought this was a stupid idea didn't mean I didn't wanna know what was going on.

"Hey!" I called for them to stop, trotting to catch up.

Leo and Usagi turned to see who'd yelled and when they recognized me, waited until I could walk beside them.

"Where've you been?" Leo asked.

I shrugged. "Here and there. Just checking things out like always."

He nodded. "Find anything good?"

I shook my head. "Well... yeah lots of things_ I_ find interesting, but nothing worth actually talking about. What about you guys?"

"We're not really looking for anything." Leo said. "But sitting around the inn when the sun is out sounded like a very dumb and boring thing to do so..." he stopped, frowning lightly and turning to Usagi. "Actually come to think of it, I just followed you. Are we actually going anywhere or are we just killing time?"

Usagi laughed at this. "I though we were looking for Donatello-san?"

I grinned at him. "Well here I am! Now what?"

"We wanted to ask you something in regards to this plan that we have made regarding this crone." Usagi said.

"Oh yeah?" I said a little hesitantly. "What exactly?"

"I have heard a rumour about there being some sort of witch or hag in the woods. I will investigate this to find if she can tell us why you cannot get home. Leonardo has said that he will, against my advice, accompany me, however he informs me that Raphael-san and Mikey-kun are not keen on the idea and will most likely wait for us here until we return. Now." He said, business-like. "Leonardo has said that he did not know whether you would prefer waiting for us here with Raphael-san and Mikey-kun or if you would like to accompany us and speak to this crone."

I blinked, a little surprised. I didn't think we were gonna get news about a witch so quickly and, to be honest, I hadn't really decided how I felt about going to go see a freaky person like that. I frowned thoughtfully to myself, weighing the options.

On the one hand, there was walking through the woods, probably late in the afternoon when it starts getting cold again, through the snow, over rough terrain to talk to a creepy old woman who apparently has magic powers which I won't really believe in until I see it. I was still betting on her just being some or other medicine woman or a rather eccentric hermit. On the other hand there was waiting back at the inn with a grumpy Raph who's in a bad mood because, well, he felt the same way I did about this witch business, and a Mikey who'll have nothing to entertain himself with except above mentioned grumpy Raph. Not to mention staying at the inn would mean I'd be sitting there with nothing to do or keep myself busy with, waiting for my big brother and his friend to come back safely from walking around an unknown forest by themselves and, although I hate to admit it, possibly seeing some cool things if all this 'witch' business turned out to be true.

I nodded to myself, making up my mind. "If it's ok with you guys, I'd like to tag along."

"Really?" Leo said with a disbelieving chuckle. "Wow. Didn't expect that." He then smiled at me. "But sure. Three heads are better than two, and we could probably use your clinical eye on all this."

The sentence made something warm rise from the pit in my stomach to my chest. I smiled happily at him. 'We could use you Donny'. It felt good hearing that.

Usagi however, ruined this little ego boost by giving me a rather miserable look, although I couldn't figure out why. He seemed to shake it off before turning to Leo.

"Then we will try and look for these rapids where she is suppose to be once evening comes around."

Leo gave a nod, turning serious again. "I'm guessing that means we're walking home in the dark."

"I am sure we will be fine." Usagi said, but he didn't look as sure as he sounded. "There is a large presence of soldiers in this town so I doubt any bandits would be foolish enough to try and operate near here and the day has been mild so I do not think we will see snowfall."

"Sounds like a plan." Leo said with a determined smile, turning back to me. "Sound good?"

"As good as it's gonna be." I said with a nod. "I'm still not sure I buy all this voodoo witch-doctor thing though. But it'll be interesting at the very least."

"Let's just hope she can help us." Leo said as we started walking again. "Usagi said if we do find some-one she'll probably just tell us _why_ we can't go home. Apparently she can't actually get us back home herself."

"Hey, that's a good thing as far as I'm concerned." I said, holding up my hands. "I don't want any weird woman zapping me anywhere thank you very much. Besides, I tend to have bad luck with getting zapped to other-dimensions."

"Yeah but we're with you this time." Leo said, throwing out an arm and hooking it around my head in a weak head-lock for a second. I pushed him off, taking a double step to stop myself from tripping.

"Yeah, I'm sure that's suppose to be comforting." I laughed at him.

Leo chuckled.

Usagi said nothing, pulling gloomy faces to himself as we walked.

The rest of the day was pretty uneventful, and a few short hours later the sun started to set. I had no idea what time it was exactly. I knew from what I'd read once that working clocks did in fact exist in the 16 hundreds, but I also knew that only the richest of people were likely to own them. Also, clocks and watches tended to be a western thing since in traditional Japan, the length of an 'hour' actually changes according to what time of year it was. Nevertheless I guessed it was around 4 or 5 in the afternoon.

We were back at the inn getting something to eat before Leo, Usagi and I would leave the town and go looking for whatever is suppose to be in the nearby forest. Raph was giving Leo the silent treatment, grumbling irritably over his bowl of noodles and generally being as bad tempered as he could. Mikey was dominating the conversation at the moment, loudly wondering what type of 'witch' we were going to be seeing and listing off the various 'types' he knew of, mostly from different video games although I was pretty sure there were some movie and comic references thrown in there as well. Leo was listening with strained patience. I simply tuned Mikey out as best I could and instead focused on what we might see in the woods once it gets dark. For a short time I wondered if we'd see anything at night we haven't seen in daylight, but I doubted it. Usagi wasn't saying much, but he didn't look like he was listening to Mikey. He seemed kinda nervous about this plan which, I gotta admit, confused me a little. Wasn't this his idea in the first place? Or was he just unhappy that I was tagging along? He'd seemed kinda bummed out when I said I wanted to come too. I wasn't really sure whether I should be annoyed with his reaction or not, but I figured there was a reasonable explanation and forgot about it as best as I could.

Once the three of us had finished our bowls we gathered ourselves up, prepared for the cold evening air and left the inn. Mikey wished us luck but Raph ignored us, merely giving a grumble as we left. Some part of me wondered if he was gonna regret not coming with us once we were gone a few minutes. I just hoped he had the sense to wait and not go running off looking for us if we were a little late. Raph tended to go back and forth between being responsible or just acting on impulse and getting in trouble. I was hoping he'd be happier staying at the inn and keeping an eye on Mikey. Then again, having the two of them together could just as easily become a recipe for disaster. Mikey and Raph tended to work off each other and if they both feel like following us nothing in the world was gonna stop them from doing so. I just hoped this would go fast, before they got any bright ideas.

The evening air was much colder without the sun warming us up. You wouldn't think a weak winter sun would make any difference to the temperature, but apparently it does. Usagi had explained that he figured we'd have a better chance of finding this shack at dusk. He figured that finding a witch's house during a sunny afternoon didn't sound like something that was likely to happen. I couldn't really fault him on his logic.

We exited the town through its pointed wooden gate and started crossing the small field, heading for the edge of the forest. Most of the field was still blanketed with snow, but the road had been cleared thanks to the heavy traffic it saw during the day. I just hoped it wouldn't snow and cover it. It might make it tricky for us to find our way back to the inn. Then again, I guess the road wasn't gonna take us right to this woman's doorstep, so we were probably gonna wander off the path anyway. Normally I'd say this was a really stupid idea. I didn't like the idea of us getting lost in a strange forest in the middle of the night during winter time.

"Are we gonna be able to find our way back ok?" I asked, thinking maybe this was something worth saying out loud.

"We'll be fine as long as we pay attention to where we're going." Leo said, turning to look behind him back at the town. "Besides, it's not like we're gonna start travelling through uncharted wilderness or anything. These woods sound pretty well-travelled."

"Yes, but we are searching for a rather hazardous area of it where not many people go." Usagi said. "But do not worry Donatello-san, we will make out way towards the river and then follow it upstream until we find these rapids where the _yama-uba _is suppose to reside."

"Speaking of which," I said as I remembered something which'd bothered me earlier. "Isn't '_Yama-uba' _meant to be strange old women living in the mountains? Hence the name?"

"For the most part yes, but really, there is little point referring to a hag as something else regardless of where they situate themselves." Usagi said. "To be honest I do not think about the technicalities that much Donatello-san."

I sighed at this. 'of course not' I thought to myself. 'I'm the only guy whose a big enough nerd to wonder about things like that.'

"Is the river far from the road?" Leo asked.

"I do not think so." Usagi said. "We may have taken a different route than this when we first arrived, but I am pretty sure part of the road travels alongside it, especially seeing as we are close to the ocean and I suspect following the river towards it is a logical way to travel, unless the terrain really is too uneven and treacherous."

"So no chances of us losing our bearings then." Leo said with a smile. "Donny's got a pretty uncanny sense of direction, but knowing our luck if there's a chance of us getting lost it'll probably happen as quickly as it can."

"Well as I said, if I go by logic and experience we should not have anything to worry about regarding the road. Unless it starts snowing and covers the path which, looking at this weather, I doubt. The only other way I can see us getting lost is because of our own stupidity, which I also do not really see happening."

"What's that suppose to mean?" I said, pulling a face at him. "You mean running off into the woods like a pack of idiots?"

Usagi laughed. "Well, yes that. But also, I heard some interesting rumours regarding these woods from some-one who claims they experienced it first hand. I am reluctant to believe his story so easily, but it did not sound overly far-fetched to me either."

"Oh yeah?" Leo said, turning to look at him as we walked. "What did he say exactly?"

"Well according to him there are supposedly strange lights in these woods. He claims they tried to lead him away from the path and get him lost in the forest, but he would have none of it and ignored them." Usagi said.

"Strange lights." I blinked at him. I wasn't sure I believed this either. "You mean like Will-o'-the-Wisps or something?"

"Will of the what?" He said, turning to pull a confused face at me.

"the-Wisps." I finished the name for him. "There suppose to be these glowing lights in forests which try and get you lost by making you follow them."

"That sounds about right yes." Usagi nodded. "However I find your choice of name for them rather strange."

"So what would you call them?" I asked. "besides 'strange lights' I mean."

"Well, it depends on the cause of course." Usagi said. "But more often than not strange unearthly lights in the woods will be fox-fire."

I nodded at this, thinking it over. I gave the forest around us a once-over as we walked in silence for a few minutes. We'd long ago left behind the field and were now following a much smaller path through the trees and under-brush. The last rays of the sun were still making the topmost branches of the trees bright gold but down here, protected by the thick cluster of tree-trunks and foliage it was already pretty dark. Once it was properly night we were gonna have trouble seeing more than a few feet around us. I thought about what strange lights would look like floating among the trees and found that I didn't need to stretch my imagination too far to get a mental image of it. Even if it turned out not to be true, I could see how such an idea could've gotten started.

I wondered if, in some strange, cross-cultural way, Will-o'-the-wisps and Fox-fires were in fact pretty much the exact same thing. I thought about this for a while and eventually decided no, that probably wasn't true. It would've been interesting if it was and I could've toyed around with the whole 'archetypal' way of thinking present in all people, but when I went over what I knew about Will-o'-the-wisps and fox-fires I realised they had one big difference. For one thing, according to medieval english accounts, Will-o'-the-wisps are suppose to have their own consciousness, or whatever passes as consciousness for a supernatural being, where-as Fox-fires were, quite simply, created by foxes. Why exactly a fox would want to try and get people lost is... is... ...

I frowned as I slowly realised something didn't make a lot of sense here. I focused my attention back onto the present. Leo and Usagi seemed to have started a conversation about something to do with people who sulked and acted like jerks when they were angry with you. Leo was obviously talking about Raph's current behaviour; Usagi was relating it to his friend Gen.

"Hey, Usagi?" I asked, not sure whether I should really bring up the thought that'd occurred to me.

He turned to look at me over his shoulder, cutting his sentence short.

"About this whole 'Fox-fire' thing." I started, hoping this wasn't going to cause any confusion between us. "That's... made by foxes right?"

To my relief he gave a nod. "Yes. That is right."

"Right..." I said, gearing myself up for the next question I had as I tried to piece it together in my head so it wouldn't come out wrong. "So... that means you actually _have_ foxes here right?"

He frowned at me. "If we did not have foxes how would we have fox-fires?" He asked simply. Leo'd turned to stare at me too. He was also frowning but much harder and with more purpose. I could tell he knew where I was going with this, and it was obvious from the expression on his face he wanted me to drop it.

I nodded hesitantly at Usagi, but pretended not to understand the look Leo was giving me and went on. "So I gotta ask... what exactly.. ..what would _you_ call a fox?"

Usagi's frown stayed on his face but it didn't deepen and I relaxed a little. He still looked confused but that was fine. Confusion I could cope with.

"You are unclear on what they are?" He asked. He sounded surprised by this but I couldn't figure out if it was because I was asking something that was pretty common knowledge or because he expected me to know since I'm suppose to be the brainiac of my family.

"Er... Let's just say I'm not really clear." I said, giving him a nervous smile.

"Can't you just figure it out on your own Don?" Leo said, a slight streak of annoyance in his voice.

I gave him a dirty look before focusing back on Usagi. He blinked back and forth between us, obviously not getting why Leo was suddenly acting so irritated. He pulled a worried expression as he turned his attention back to me. He looked just as eager as I was to avoid a fight breaking out. He turned to face me properly, walking slightly backwards and holding his hands apart in what was suppose to be a rough measurement. The effect reminded me way too much of Mikey.

"They vary in size but generally are about so big. They are more or less like the _tokage_ except they are covered in fur and their tails are shorter and bushy."

"Ah." I said, nodding. This didn't really help though and I found about a hundred other things to be confused about. Mostly to do with how the heck you could have rabbits that were people but foxes that were animals in the same reality. Especially since I knew for a rock solid _fact_ that I'd seen people in the towns we'd passed through who had, without a doubt, all the looks and characteristics of foxes but who were very clearly people. However I refused to say any of this out loud. Partly because I was afraid if I did reality and logic might notice this little inconsistency and me vocalising it will cause this dimension to cancel itself out or something, but mostly because Leo was by this stage trying to burn me into a cinder with his eyes.

Usagi carried on with his explanation. "They are rare, but they cause trouble where they are found as they love to play tricks on people. Mostly through shape-shifting, or as we have said, with their fox-fires. I generally dislike having anything to do with them. As far as _obakemono_ go they are probably not as dangerous as some of the others, but I still try and avoid them if I can."

I paused, thinking this over. "So... They're a kind of monster then." I said carefully.

"But of course." Usagi said, giving me confused smile along with a light frown. "What else could light ghostly fires in the forest and transform their appearance for the sole purpose of making our lives miserable?"

I nodded again, sorting this out in my head. I'd wanted to know because, obviously, I thought it was beyond weird to hear a 5 foot anthropomorphic rabbit talking about foxes in the woods but this topic of conversation was getting far too meta for me, and I decided to leave it at that.

"Are we close to the river yet?" Leo asked with a slight bite in his voice. I sank slightly as I walked. I was sure a very annoyed lecture was in my close future and I wasn't looking forward to it.

There was a short pause before Usagi spoke. "I do not know, but I cannot hear it."

Leo nodded, looking around the area. The sun had properly set by now and it was getting dark very quickly. "It wouldn't have iced over or anything right?"

"No, I do not think so." Usagi said. "It is not nearly cold enough for ice to set in on a flowing river."

"Are you sure we're heading the right way then?" I asked, hoping Leo'd forget my very awkward line of questions if I actually contributed something to our search.

"Well, I was not entirely sure of the way to begin with." Usagi said frowning lightly to himself as his pace slowed a little. He looked around. "But we have not come across any paths breaking off from the one we are on, so I do not think we have made a mistake."

"Maybe there _is_ no path to the river." Leo said.

"That would be strange." Usagi said. "but I suppose it is possible."

"So what do we do?" Leo asked, turning to face him properly. "Do we go cross-country?"

"Hmmm." Usagi hummed. It was clear he didn't like this idea at all. "I am worried we are becoming concerned too soon." His frown faded as he turned to Leo and me again. "I suggest we keep walking a little further, and if we do not find anything then we decide whether we want to risk veering from the path or not."

Leo and I nodded. I silently prayed we 'd find a fork in the road or something soon. I wasn't really sure I liked the idea of wandering into the dark with no way to orientate ourselves properly. I started making plans for what we could do if we did indeed get lost. I wasn't sure how far we were from the town by now but I wondered if I could maybe see its lights if I were to climb up a tree. I dunno how many lights would be lit in the middle of the night exactly, but I was hoping it'd be just bright enough to distinguish it from the rest of the landscape.

In the end though I didn't need to worry too much because we did come across a smaller path breaking off the road eventually and a while after that we could all three hear the sound of running water. A short while later we finally found the river itself. The path we were on didn't in fact follow it either downstream or upstream, but instead crossed over it with a crude little bridge. So in the end, we did leave the path to follow the river upstream. According to Usagi we were close to the ocean, so I didn't expect the small river to have any branches that might confuse us, but I made sure to try and take note of any landmarks we passed all the same. Or at least any landmarks I could actually see. It was pitch dark by now. And it was getting very, very cold.

We stopped talking after a while, focusing instead on trying to spot this shack where this woman was suppose to live. We were also keeping our ears open for the sound of rapids. Despite having left the road, the river bank seemed pretty even and easy to follow. According to Usagi, he'd been warned that this area was suppose to be dangerous, but I didn't really see it. I still watched where I was going though, just in case.

I dunno how long we walked, probably closer to an hour, before we finally heard the sound of rushing water, and once we rounded a large collection of boulders we found these rapids we'd been looking for. The river itself wasn't overly large or deep, but it was obvious you'd be in a lot of trouble if you fell into that water. I subconsciously took a step back, away from the river.

"It should be close to here." Usagi said, looking around with a slight squint. "Do the two of you sense anything? Your ability to traverse in the darkness is much better than mine."

I frowned to myself, turning my attention away from the water and looking over the area. There wasn't much chance of me finding anything though. It was properly night by now and as is typical of our luck, there was no real moon out to give us some proper light. On top of that, the thundering water drowned out all other sounds so I couldn't even try and listen for things like a fire crackle or anything like that which might've given away the position of a house. I turned to look at Leo who was three times the tracker I was to see if he could find anything. He'd perched himself on top of a boulder, looking around with a frown of concentration, but he didn't seem to see anything either.

I turned to Usagi who had started to walk along the edge of the river, searching the nearby trees. I trotted after him.

"What should we be looking for exactly?" I asked over the sound of the rapids.

"A house. I am not sure what size. It could be anything from a dilapidated wreck to a well-kept, sizeable home." He said.

I nodded, coming to a stop again so I could turn and watch Leo instead. He'd dropped down off his perch and was coming over to us, still frowning to himself.

"Any luck?" I asked him when he got close enough to hear me.

"Nope." he said. "She must be further upstream."

"If she's here at all." I sighed, following after Usagi.

"C'mon. You don't need to get all cynical about it." Leo said, giving me a half-annoyed glance.

I gave a small shrug. "Sorry Leo, but I'm still finding this whole thing to be... well... kinda silly." I gave a huff of a breath, waving a hand at the surrounding trees slightly. "I mean have you taken the time to think about what we're doing exactly? We're wandering the woods of Feudal Japan looking for a _witch_ so she can tell us how to open a magic portal to get back home. I mean is it just me or does this sound like the plot of a family friendly film from the 80s or something? And not even a _good_ family film! It sounds like something that'd air on Lifetime Network or something."

"You forgot to mention we're also following a white rabbit." Leo said calmly.

"Oh har har." I grumbled. "Very funny."

"But if you really want to point out the craziness of all this you really should mention we're also two mutant turtles in our late teens who know ninjitsu and we're following a rabbit who also happens to be a samurai." He gave me a smile. "You could probably push the ridiculousness of this whole mess even further, but it'd probably just give you a headache. My advice; just forget about how stupid this all sounds when you take a step back and think about it and focus instead on the task at hand."

I gave a sigh and a nod. "I guess so. I just find that a little hard to do. I'm use to things making more sense and having more logic to them."

"Since when has anything we've ever done have any kind of logic to it whatsoever?" Leo pointed out.

I tried to fight off a chuckle but failed miserably. "Good point."

"Are you two even looking?" An annoyed Usagi called over his shoulder at us.

"Sorry!" I called back, giving him a grin as an apology.

It was hard to see in the dark, but I recognized his body language as he rolled his eyes and shook his head at us, turning back to the front. "Apart from looking for this shack, you should also talk less and focus more on where you are treading. I d not want any-one falling into the river and drowning on me."

"Yes mom." I muttered under my breath. Leo snorted loudly, trying to stifle a fit of laughter at this.

I felt myself grin stupidly at his reaction despite it being a rather lame joke. However, I took Usagi's advice and turned away from Leo and tried to get my attention back to looking for a house of some kind. Would a witch have a lantern outside her home or something like that? Would she try and keep would-be visitors away or would she be more likely to lure them in for... whatever it is witches are suppose to do with their victims? I had no idea.

I slowed my pace, keeping up the rear as we walked on. I turned my attention to the bank on the other side of the river and for a moment felt my stomach drop as I wondered if perhaps we should've crossed the little bridge a while back and search on the other side. If so, this whole exercise could be completely pointless and we might've walked right past her shack and not even know it. I tried to squelch out this thought and focused back on this side of the river with renewed vigour. Usagi and Leo had stopped ahead of me again. Leo was climbing up on another large rock to get a better vantage point. I pulled a face to myself and silently hoped the rock he was standing on gave him proper footing so he wouldn't slip and fall into the rough water. I gave a sigh as I looked around again, adjusting the black silk of my kimono over my shoulders, my breath clouding in front of my face.

I saw Usagi start walking again out of the corner of my eye and was about to follow him when I noticed he wasn't in fact moving to follow the river again, but was taking a few hesitant looking steps towards the trees, a deep frown on his face.

I blinked, staring at him for a moment before I walked closer. Leo was still standing on his boulder, craning his neck to try and see as far as he could.

"D'you see something?" I asked Usagi, standing next to him and following his line of sight, trying to see what he was frowning at.

"I do not know." he said, his voice soft as he only gave me half his attention. "I thought I saw a lantern for a moment."

"Where?" I asked, turning to stare at the trees properly. He pointed, not breaking eye contact from the spot where he apparently saw the light.

I squinted, trying to make out some kind of glow in the darkness, but I couldn't see anything. After a few minutes I gave up and turned back to him, giving a slight shrug.

"Strange lights?" I suggested.

Usagi made a thoughtful noise, straightening again as he kept his gaze on the trees.

"What's up?" Leo said when he realised we were both staring at something. He dropped off the boulder and walked over, trying to see what we were looking at.

"Usagi said he thought he saw a light." I said.

"a Lantern?" Leo asked, standing on the other side of him.

"I thought so." Usagi said. "But it is gone now. I must have imagined it."

"Hmm." Leo said, giving the forest a thoughtful stare. "Maybe the guy you spoke to was right and there actually _are_ strange lights in this place."

"That's what I said." I grinned at Leo.

"I try and not let assumption cloud my-" Usagi started to say before he stopped, the frown reappearing sharply on his face. "No! No there it is again!" He pointed hurriedly.

Both Leo and I quickly shot closer to him, trying to follow his finger.

"I don't see it." Leo said, sounding frustrated.

"Me either." I admitted.

"I am positive I saw a lantern, and no it was not a ghostly fire or a strange glow. It was most certainly a lantern." Usagi said, full of conviction.

"So what do we do?" I asked, turning to Leo by reflex. "Do we leave the river bank?"

"Obviously." Leo said, already moving to walk in between the trees. Usagi followed him, quickening his step so he could lead the way.

"Alright." I said uncertainly, following after them.

We cut our way through the forest which wasn't half as much fun as it sounded. Without a path to follow the ground was rocky, uneven and very slippery from fallen snow and rotten leaves. The bushes were bare and clung to my _hakama_ and kimono and I was scared I might rip the material by accident. They kept me warm and were more valuable than a stack of gold at the moment, but I still grumbled over how I was never gonna wear clothes again unless I absolutely positively had to.

I still hadn't seen anything like a lantern and stumbled after my brother and Usagi in blind faith. I kept my ears open for the sound of the rapids as they slowly grew softer and softer behind us.

A little too suddenly for my liking the trees parted and we found ourselves standing in front of a very small, rickety looking house. Its roof looked rotted in places, and the wood of its walls looked worm-eaten and overly moist. There was a broken bucket lying next to the sliding door and a tangled mess of broken poles and string that might at some stage have been a drying rack for fish. I'd be lying if I said it looked like it was in use, but to be honest it hardly struck me as a 'witch's house'. Nothing about it looked overly foreboding or dangerous. It just looked like a forgotten, crumbling house.

One strange thing I _did_ notice though and turned to frown at Usagi in confusion.

"I don't see any lantern." I said flatly.

"Neither do I." Usagi said, his face serious as he gave the building one of his more intimidating stares.

We said nothing for a few moments as we each tried to come up with an explanation we could casually say out loud, but it was obvious no-one could think of anything.

"Come on." Usagi said eventually, walking towards the building purposefully.

We followed him. Leo's face business-like and hard-set. I recognised his pace as he walked. He was preparing himself to go into a battle-stance at the split of a second. I bit on my lip as I frowned, wishing I could draw my bo from where it was secured over my shell. Usagi slid open the door and peered around inside, one hand resting on the door-frame, the other gripping the hilt of his wakizashi. He paused for a few moments before he pushed off the door and walked inside. We followed after him.

The house looked as neglected inside as it did on the outside. Thick cobwebs hung in the corners, dark grey from dust. The small amount of floor that was sand before the risen wooden one was unswept and had some dry looking weeds growing in the corners against the wall. There was a pair of torn and unravelled _waraji_ sandals lying strewn across the sandy ground. All in all, I would've said no-one lived here if it wasn't for the fact that the owner of the house was staring at us when we entered.

She was small and obviously old, but she didn't exactly strike me as frail. She was wearing a purple kimono which I was rather surprised to see looked like it was well taken care of. I guess with the house looking like it was I wasn't expecting the owner to look any cleaner. Her hair was white and looked frizzed, but for the most part didn't seem overly wild or unkept. She had a thin face and small, sharp eyes set above a short muzzle. Her fingers were long and her hands thin. She stared at us through the thick smoke which billowed from the firepit, filling the enclosed area. She reminded me of a small, knotted tree, rock hard with age.

Usagi squared his shoulders.

"We have come to ask you some questions." he said, his voice direct and confident. "My friends here have travelled here through very unconventional means but are unable to get home and we do not know why. We were hoping you could provide us with some answers."

The old woman uncrossed then re-crossed her legs at this, looking Usagi up and down critically before she turned to glance at Leo before settling her stare on me. I tried not to shudder, telling myself it was stupid to feel intimidated when I still hadn't seen anything to convince me she was anything more than a really weird old woman living in the woods.

Her stare lingered on me for a few moments before she turned her attention to Usagi. "You say 'unconventional'. What does that mean exactly?"

Her voice sounded hoarse from misuse, but she spoke softly and clearly. I tried to imagine what a maniacal cackled might sound like with a voice like that and couldn't picture it at all.

Usagi stepped forward, sitting himself on the other side of the fire-pit, Leo and I following close behind him.

"They come from another world." Usagi said, not breaking eye contact with her. "They travelled through a doorway which, for a brief period, connects their earth to ours. However, when they attempted to return back to their own home the doorway would not open. We want to know if you could tell us why."

The old woman's permanent frown deepened slightly when Usagi finished, but she didn't move.

"You want an answer. You do not want a solution." She said as if to clarify.

Before either me or Leo could say anything Usagi gave a definite nod. "We only want an answer."

I frowned, but said nothing. The old woman gave a single nod, leaning forward slightly as she inspected her fire. "And what do you offer as payment?"

I felt my heart jump slightly at this. Payment? We were suppose to pay?

"I have a handful of gold coins." Usagi said, not sounding surprised in the least.

The old woman gave a nod again. "Then put your offering forward, along with a personal affect belonging to your friends."

Usagi seemed to falter slightly at this before he gave a nod, reaching into his kimono for the small tied bag where he kept his money. As he did so I saw him shoot me a worried glance and I realised he hadn't thought me or Leo would have to give something as well and didn't know what to ask for. I bit down on my lip hard as my mind raced for a few moments, trying to think of what we could give the old woman that belonged to us. I felt my hand move towards my _obi, _subconsciously searching for my small notebook.

"Here." Leo said before I could pull it free.

I turned to look at him, trying to see what on earth he had to give as a way of a 'personal affect' and instantly spotted the ribbon-like strip of material as he placed it in Usagi's hand. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my throat as I watched Usagi take the mask from him and, to my silent horror, throw it into the fire.

'That's not fair.' a very small voice said in the back of my head. I mean yeah, it was just a mask but... it still felt lousy for some reason.

The fire sparked and I saw the bright blue material instantly catch fire and burn itself up. The fire flamed angrily for a few moments before a large column of smoke erupted from it causing me to cough for a few moments as I got a face full of the vile smelling stuff. I rubbed at my burning eyes irritably as I heard the old woman start to mutter strange and unsettling things. When I opened my eyes again the fire was dancing alarmingly high in front of me and the smoke was thickening around us. For a second I was afraid that it'd somehow gone out of control and the shack was in danger of catching alight, but a quick, sideways glance towards Usagi told me there wasn't any reason to freak out just yet, so I focused back on the burning fire-pit and the small, elderly woman muttering madly to herself behind it.

The smoke made the back of my throat burn and stung at my eyes, causing them to blur and distort the figure of the woman in front of me. The whole effect was one I really didn't like at all. The thick smoke made me feel light headed and my blurred vision and the sound of the old woman's mutterings made me feel disorientated and slightly confused, as if I was somehow being pulled away from reality and into chaos. If this woman wasn't really witch, she deserved a medal in manipulation to make you _think_ she was.

Just as her muttering and whispering grew unnervingly fast and loud and the smoke started feeling too thick for my lungs to handle, there was a sudden surge from the flames and they sunk back down into the fire-pit, the smoke that had been clouding up from them turning from an angry grey to a surprising ash-white and curling lazily from what suddenly looked like a dying fire.

There was silence as the old woman stared at the curling patterns, frowning to herself and sucking on her teeth. Eventually she spoke, softly and carefully as if she was still trying to piece together whatever it is she was reading.

"The reason you can not open a door to take you home... is because the doorways leading out of this world have been locked..."

I blinked at this and instantly regretted it as my eyes stung angrily again.

"Locked? By who?" I heard Leo's voice say. It sounded hoarse and scratchy.

The old woman shook her head slowly, keeping her eyes on the swirling smoke. "By a being from yet another world. Not from this or from yours."

"Why?" Leo asked again. "Why would some-one want to keep us here?"

"It has nothing to do with you." the old woman said, her frown flickering. "The one who has locked the door is trying to keep some-one else _out..._ away from its own plain of existence. That you were here and were blocked from returning home is merely an unhappy coincidence..."

"Ok." Leo said patiently. "So who is this person or being or whatever that's locked the portals out?"

There was a pause as the old woman studied her swirling smoke, licking her lips thoughtfully. "It is unclear... but it appears to be a great Lord.. one of much power and veneration... more than that I cannot tell..."

"Who is he trying to keep here?" Usagi asked, frowning at the swirling smoke himself as if to try and follow whatever it is the old woman was seeing.

There was another pause as the woman strained her eyes in concentration. The swirling smoke was thinning. "A man. A very sad man with a broken spirit... but with dark and mad ambitions... ...He seeks to build a bridge between these two worlds... so that he may cross to this great Lord's plain of existence... and crush it."

"Why?" Usagi pressed, sitting forward a bit more.

The smoke was dissolving more and more, becoming a thin, hanging mist in the single roomed building. A thread-thin coil still slunk up from the dying coals, but it was weak and got lost among the thicker clouds hovering around us.

The old woman shook her head slowly. "It is unclear... but his motivation seems... fractured... and his reasoning bent and twisted..."

She suddenly gave a very deep sigh, sinking in her seat. "That is all. You must go."

Without a word, Usagi got to his feet, keeping his eyes fixed on the old woman as he waited for us to get up too. We turned, heading back for the door. I walked quickly, eager for fresh air and the crisp cold of the outside world.

"There is one more thing I saw." The old woman's voice said, suddenly sounding strong again.

We stopped, turning to look back at her. Usagi's frown deepened at this, but he said nothing, staring at the woman suspiciously. I was rather alarmed to see her eyes were resting on me. She stared, hard and meaningfully, her dark eyes cutting into mine. And then, almost instantly, she broke her gaze, turning to stare at Usagi instead.

"There is a cloud hanging over your horizon, young samurai. I see a dark event waiting for you. I advise you listen to what I have to say."

Usagi's frown hardened and he turned to face her again properly. I stared at her as well, turning only briefly to give Usagi a quick glance before looking back at her.

"And what would you ask us to pay for such information?" Usagi said darkly, not even bothering to hide his suspicion.

The woman stared back at him with a very serious, but almost hungry looking expression. "What I have seen in your future is grave and of great importance. Naturally my price would be... something higher than gold."

Usagi's expression tightened as he stared at her. She looked back and forth between the three of us again, her eyes resting on each of us in turn, lingering on me lastly before she turned her full attention back on Usagi.

I almost yelped when I felt something wrap itself around on my wrists very tightly, squeezing it hard. I visibly jumped and was about to try and pull myself free from whatever it was before I realised a split second later, that is was Usagi. He'd grabbed hold of my wrist, and was currently clutching it in a death-grip.

"Then I am afraid we must decline." He said to the old woman, not showing any acknowledgement of what he was doing to me. "If there is misfortune in our future, we will merely have to cope with it once it arrives."

As soon as he finished his sentence he turned and walked out, Leo following close behind us. Usagi didn't let go of me. We exited the stifling shack and stepped back out into the pitch-black night. The air was so cold it felt almost like a solid object hitting us as we stepped through the layer of snow, heading back towards the trees. The air felt painfully clear to breathe and I started to shiver.

"I'm not really sure how much that helped." Leo said in a quiet voice. "It's not exactly information we can do anything with is it?"

Usagi continued his march through the trees, making a B-line for the river again. "But at least we know that it is nothing that we are doing wrong, nor is it something on your side of the portal."

Leo gave a depressed nod, obviously disappointed. "I guess... we can't do anything else but wait, and hope whoever locked the ability to make portals from this dimension unlocks them again at some stage. I didn't even know you could do that." He turned his gaze back to Usagi, becoming more serious. "But I really don't like what she said about the whole future thing."

"Neither did I." Usagi said, still frowning hard to himself. "That is why we need to head back to town as fast as we can."

"Usagi, you're hurting me." I complained, trying hard not to trip as I kept up with him.

He blinked, his frown relaxing slightly as he realised he was still clutching my wrist and let it go. I tried to rub circulation back into it, trotting to march beside him instead. I gave him a worried look.

"Did she mean she saw something bad in _your_ future? Or in _all_ our futures?" I asked. I felt this was something that needed an answer.

"I do not know, but I was not prepared to find out." Usagi said, his pace slowing slightly as he started to calm down.

"Are you sure about that?" Leo asked with concern. "I mean, if she saw something bad happening, wouldn't it be best if we hear what it is? I mean yeah, I know she asked for even more payment but wouldn't it have been better to just give her what she wanted and hear what she saw?"

"It would not be worth it." Usagi said with a great degree of certainty.

"Why not?" Leo said with a frown, obviously disagreeing.

"Because what she wanted," Usagi said with a slight hiss. "was Donatello."

**Xxxxx**

_Wakizashi - short-sword_

_Waraji – woven sandal_

_When it comes to animals in UY sometimes the best thing to do is not to question it and just roll with it. Sadly, Donny doesn't strike me as the kind of person to do so so easily._


	23. A Crazy Idea

_Hey every-one! It's been a long time hasn't it? I'm sorry I haven't worked on this fic at all in the last few months. Technically I still haven't as this was written like in April or something. However, even though the next chapter isn't finished yet I find myself REALLY unmotivated to start writing this thing again. I seem to be falling back into bad habits of not finishing stories. I thought maybe uploading this and hopefully getting some feedback might urge me to keep going._

_I don't have any free time lately though as I've gotten a job which is basically 7 days a week, but I thought I owed it to those still waiting for an update (if any-one is still left)_

_Here's the next chapter. Hopefully SOMETHING will actually happen in this story one day in the future._

**Xxxxx**

"Told ya it was a waste a' time." Raph grumbled after we told him and Mikey what we'd learnt from the witch in the woods.

I suppressed a small growl at this. "You didn't say anything like that. You were too busy complaining about how stupid the idea was."

"Well, was I wrong?" Raph said smugly, crossing his arms behind his head.

"Yes actually." I said, still glaring at him. "Maybe we didn't learn how we can fix the problem, but now we have a better idea of what's going on. At least we know the portal not working has nothing to do with what we're doing."

"Yeah, I bet that just tickles ya pink doesn't it Leader boy?" Raph said icily.

I bit down on my tongue, determined not to get dragged into an argument with him. I hadn't even told him anything about the witch's warning about something bad happening in the future, or how she apparently had her eyes set on Donny as a way of bargaining for the information, something I was still utterly horrified and furious about. I really didn't think telling Raphael that little detail right now would be a good idea.

"It means we can stop driving ourselves mad trying to figure out what we're doing wrong." I said cooly.

"That only applies to those of us who actually let this whole mess get to 'em." Raph said casually. I could tell he was trying to get a reaction out of me and I was fighting down the urge to snap at him.

"It also means we can relax." I said, trying to keep the volume of my voice down. "If we have to wait for some or other person or being or whatever the heck it's suppose to be to make it so we can use portals again it's out of our hands."

"How do you do that anyway?" Donny interrupted. He was lying on his futon, his arms crossed over the small pillow as he watched the growing argument between me and Raph. "I mean, how do you 'lock' a portal? Especially from a different dimension. How's that even possible?"

"If we knew that our lives would be a lot less crazy Donny." Mikey piped up, giving him a grin. "If you can figure it out let us know, I'd be glad to put a 'do not 'disturb' sign on our dimension every now and then."

"I'm sure it's a little more complicated than that Mikey." Don said, giving him a drained expression.

"If it's some-one from yet _another_ dimension I think it's safe to say wherever he's from they've got a better idea on how these things work than us to pull something like this off." I said, glad to have my attention pulled away from Raph and his bad attitude.

"And yet, some-one who is supposedly so advanced to pull off such a feat is trying to prevent an invasion from _us._" Usagi spoke up. He'd been pretty quiet the entire trip back and now that we'd retired to our room in the inn he was still for the most part keeping to himself.

The four of us turned to blink at him when he spoke.

"Yeah but if he's locked the place so you can't leave this dimension there's no problem right?" Mikey pointed out. "I mean, how's some-one suppose to invade a place if they can't leave... or whatever." He made a painful noise and clutched at his head. "This is too weird for me guys. If it's got nothing to do with us then great. Awesome. We can just sit back and cool our jets till whoever it is sorts out their own issues."

"I like this plan." Raph said, sitting up again.

"Yeah? And how long do you two plan to wait?" I said irritably. "How long do you think whoever's making this whole mess can hold out? Weeks? Months? Years? D'you really wanna try and see how long this goes on before we can get back to Master Splinter?" I didn't need to drop our sensei's name into the conversation, but I did it anyway.

"So what d'you suggest we do Leo?" Raph said, sounding slightly guilty.

I sighed, sinking a little on my futon. "I don't know."

"I say we find this guy tryin' ta invade this other guy and give him a good clobberin'" Raph said, smacking a fist into his other hand meaningfully.

"Yeah, cause that'd go down great." Mikey said sarcastically.

"Works for me." Raph shrugged. "If more people got a clobberin' there'd be fewer wars, mark my words."

I heard Donny make a noise that indicated his sense of logic was getting seriously injured by Raph's reasoning as he hooked his hands behind his head and buried his face into his pillow.

"Except we have no idea who's crazy enough to do something like that." I said, leaning back on my arms.

"Or who is really concerned with other plains of existence." Usagi spoke up again, still using his quiet, thoughtful voice as if he was talking more to himself than any-one else.

Raph's frown deepened and he twisted in place to look at the samurai. "What're ya mumblin' about bunny-boy?"

Usagi gave a long sigh and shook his head, uncrossing his legs and stretching them out over the futon instead. "The idea just seems very ludicrous to me. I have never heard of any-one ever having such extreme notions regarding conquest and invasion." he looked up at the rest of us. "I mean have you seen the state of _Nippon_ as it is?" He blinked to himself, then sunk again. "No... No I suppose you have not." He shook his head again. "Nevertheless, the country is checkered with territories and provinces and different alliances. It is not even properly unified, regardless of what the Shogun might say. Yes, there are no open wars between any-one at the moment, but animosity and division is still alive and well. Why on Earth would any-one trouble themselves with an idea such as trying to travel to who knows what mythical 'other worlds' when there is one right here which has not yet properly been 'conquered' by any-one?"

"Geez, relax man." Mikey said with a concerned frown. "How're we suppose to know? I'm still trying to get over the fact that some-one locked the stupid things."

"Remember what the old woman said?" Donny spoke up, having pulled his face out of his pillow again. "She said that whoever's trying to get out of this dimension is probably missing a screw anyway. If we're trying to find some kind of logic in a plan made by a crazy person we're gonna be sitting here forever."

"And yet, whoever this person is trying to invade feels threatened enough to take such an extreme precaution." Usagi said.

"If I heard some wacko was tryin' ta crash in on our house I'd lock the door too." Raph said.

"How would you even hear about something like that though?" Donny said thoughtfully.

Mikey made a very loud, annoyed noise, waving his hands. "Dudes! Chill! Seriously _I'm_ gonna go nuts if you guys don't just drop it and relax! I mean geez!"

"But then we're back at the fact that we're stuck here." I said, turning to him.

"So what else is new?" Mikey said, the familiar whine in his voice. "Look can't we just drop it and go back to freaking out tomorrow morning? I've had all the weirdness I can take for one day!"

"You didn't even go with us." Donny said, shooting him a frown.

"Yeah and guess what, I'm not gonna lose any sleep over it either." Mikey said, giving him just as irritable a frown in return as he started to scratch around on his futon before tugging the blanket over himself.

"I'm with the dingus." Raph said, sitting up and cracking his neck. "If we're gonna start a new game ta drive ourselves outta our shells let's get some sleep first."

I gave a silent sigh but nodded. It was clear no-one was in the mood to try and come up with any plans right now, and after Usagi, Don and mine's little trip through the freezing cold to get back to the inn a warm bed sounded exactly like the kind of thing we needed.

"Right. We'll try and come up with an idea tomorrow." I said, pulling open the blankets so I could crawl in.

"We're heading back to the temple right?" Mikey said, rolling over to look at me.

I thought about this for a moment. With all that happened today I'd forgotten we were planning on going back to Sanshobo's. I wasn't sure if what the witch told us would make any difference to our plans whatsoever, but I decided that was best left for tomorrow as well.

"We'll talk about it in the morning." I said to Mikey, lying down.

Mikey gave me a surprisingly disappointed stare before he turned his shell to me again and settled down. The others followed our example and bunked down for the night. I watched Usagi for a short moment as a partially remembered conversation from this morning came back to me, and I silently hoped he would managed to get some proper sleep tonight.

Despite what I told Mikey, the more I thought about it the more I was convinced travelling back to Sanshobo's tomorrow was the best idea. I didn't like us still relying on Usagi's budget of course, but that wasn't the reason I was anxious to get going already. I know nothing really bad happened, and we've had trips to the Pizza Hut more threatening than that, but what happened at the witch's shack really unnerved me and I wanted to get my brothers out of here as fast as I could. I hadn't really noticed it while it was happening, but I trusted Usagi's word and if he said that crazy bat had a nasty interest in Donny I believed him. That bothered me. It bothered me a lot. Maybe it was the typical paranoia that Raph loves making fun of, but it made my guts twist just thinking about it.

I turned to give Don's futon a glance before I allowed myself to relax and went to sleep.

I dreamt about witches and portals and about an army of soldiers marching over a large bridge into an unknown dimension.

I was the first person to wake up the next morning. Not that it was overly early or anything, I was just the first sucker to open my eyes and be unable to go back to sleep. I sighed, rubbing at my face before I felt around instinctively, trying to find my mask. When I remembered that it'd been thrown into the old crone's fire I grimaced and blew out an irritated breath. I was still way too tired for that kind of revelation to hit me. It was just a mask, and I didn't mind overly much to have given it away, especially if it helped us, but it was still _mine_. It was turquoise blue, made out of cotton and I had, for lack of a better word, 'made' it myself. More importantly, when exactly was I gonna be able to make another one?

I pushed myself up, stretching to wake up protesting muscles as I groggily looked over the rest of my brothers. Every-one was still asleep. Every-one was still ok.

I found the grey silk of the kimono I'd been given and pulled it on, tying it around myself as I slowly woke up more. I could hear voices coming from downstairs of people having their breakfast, reminding me that I was hungry. I turned to stumble out of the room when I stopped, spotting the one futon apart from my own which was empty. I blinked at it blankly for a second before I sank with a heavy sigh. I slid open the door to our room quietly before I went downstairs to find Usagi.

Downstairs was pretty busy and I wondered how long we'd overslept. Food was hurriedly being served to both guests and travellers and the air was thick with the smell of fish and sticky rice and carbon dioxide. This made me feel a little better, and I hoped the reason Usagi was awake was simply because the rest of us were being lazy and not because he had trouble sleeping. I looked around the room trying to spot him and caught sight of him sitting at a table by himself. There wasn't anything like breakfast in front of him, or even tea, and my hopes rose a little. Maybe he'd just sat down and hadn't even been served yet.

I walked over to him, ready to say good morning. But as I got closer I felt my hopes crumble again when I saw the expression on his face. He was staring unseeingly in front of him, his hands intertwined with each other as he rested the tip of his muzzle against them. He was frowning lightly to himself, but it wasn't in annoyance or thoughtfulness. I couldn't really place the emotion. I'd say he looked like he was in pain but that makes it sound way too over-dramatic. If he looked in pain it was the kind of pain you got from getting pricked by a thorn at the very most. Some part of me still held out hope that he was just making that face because he was thinking over what we learned yesterday, but another part of me was sure it was because he was tired.

I walked over, keeping my eyes on him. He didn't so much as flinch when I sat down at his table. I wasn't sure if he'd heard me or not, he just kept staring quietly at nothing. After a few moments I shifted uncomfortably and was about to say something to catch his attention when, to my surprise, he spoke first.

"_Ohayo."_ He said simply.

"Oh.. er... hi." I said, caught off guard. "Good morning."

He gave a small nod, but other than that stayed as he was. I watched him for a few moments longer but when it became clear that 'ohayo' was all I was gonna get I decided it was up to me to make conversation.

"Sleep well?" I asked, rather stupidly.

He shook his head, almost remorsefully.

I sighed, sinking in my seat a little. "Sorry to hear it." I leaned forward on my elbows, rubbing at my face. "D'you eat yet?"

"No." He said quietly.

I rested my chin in my hand, watching him. The strange, sad frown stayed on his face as he continued to stare off into the non-existent distance. I felt a frown spread on my own face. There was something more than insomnia going on here. He looked troubled. I wasn't sure whether it was something I should bring up though and bit down on my lip. I know I can get a little pushy when it comes to other people being ok or not, but this situation made me wonder if prying was really the best thing to do. On the other hand that's never stopped me before, and the alternative seemed to be sitting here in silence, waiting for him to decide he was going to just blurt out whatever's bothering him without any prompting when he's already sitting there like a granite statue. I sighed, trying to think of how I could start a conversation that might lead to him opening up. However, a lifetime's experience with Mikey and Raph have taught me one thing; if you're gonna try get some-one to talk about what's bothering them you're gonna have to be prepared for a lot of stone-walling.

Nevertheless I straightened in my seat, trying to think of how I could start. But before I could think of a single word Usagi spoke again.

"I dreamt of my father last night." He said almost painfully straightforward.

I boggled at him, thrown for a complete loop.

"Oh..." I said stupidly.

Usagi said nothing, staring ahead of himself.

"Erm..." I added.

"I cannot remember if I'd ever done so before." Usagi went on.

Part of me was saying 'He _has_ such a thing?' while another part of me was saying 'Of course he does! What, did you think he sprung from the earth or something?' a third part of me said, out loud; "Was it a nightmare?"

"I do not think so." Usagi said, shaking his head and finally adjusting his position, breaking out of whatever trance he'd been in. "I cannot remember very much of it at all, but it was not a nightmare, although it had not been an uplifting or comforting dream either."

I chewed on the inside of my cheek for a few minutes, not really sure what to say. "Do the two of you not get along?"

"On the contrary." he said, running a hand over his face tiredly. "We were quite close."

The use of past tense didn't escape me and I sank as I realised what this was really about.

"I'm guessing the guy's not around any more." I said sympathetically.

"No." Said Usagi turning to look at me finally, but he didn't elaborate.

I shifted my weight uncomfortably. I wasn't really sure what I was suppose to say to something like this, and the longer I thought and the more the silence dragged itself out the more I realised that the chances of me saying _anything_ were growing less and less by the passing second.

Eventually though Usagi seemed to realise I had no idea what to say and sighed, turning to look over the rest of the room, searching for the innkeeper or his wife. "I did manage a few short hours of rest though. I will be alright. I have done much more on far less. It is merely the lingering emotion that is bothering me."

I nodded dumbly. "You're talking about going back to Sanshobo's."

He nodded back. "Yes. I think it would be for the best. There is really nothing for us here, and your brothers seem anxious to return."

"They're anxious to go home, that's what they are." I said.

"Sanshobo's temple is at least somewhere where we will be safe." Usagi said, finally catching the innkeeper's eye. When the man scuttled over Usagi asked for us to get some breakfast before turning back to me. "I am anxious to leave this town. It is starting to unnerve me for some reason."

"Not just 'for some reason'." I said with a frown. "For a very _good_ reason. I wanna get as far away from that weird witch woman as we can, not to mention I'm still worried over how much money we're costing you."

"I am still far from being bankrupt." Usagi said, managing a smile. "But I agree, there is little to no point in dragging this trip out more than is necessary. It is best we get back on the road while the weather is still mild."

I gave a nod. "That's my thinking exactly." I faltered slightly. "That is... if you're up to leading us back on little sleep."

"I am not a child." Usagi said, rolling his eyes slightly. "I am perfectly capable of guiding us back, you do not need to worry about me."

I made a small noise at this. "Well, if you're sure."

"There was a time I would take part in battles on no sleep at all for days on end." Usagi said. "I am sure a small trip through the countryside is something I would be able to survive." He gave a sigh after this, sitting back a little. "Although granted, I was much younger back then."

I couldn't help but laugh at this. It got me a very annoyed and confused look but I didn't care.

"Yeah." I said. "because you're obviously so old and decrepit now."

Usagi made a soft growling noise and pulled a face at me but he didn't seem to take too much offence. I put my hands up though. "But I get the picture, I'll lay off the paranoia."

"Good." He said with a satisfied nod

After a few minutes the innkeeper's wife gave us our breakfast and we each set about filling ourselves up for the trip, discussing whether or not we should take the same route we did when we travelled here. Donny joined us after a while followed by Mikey. Raph was the last to come downstairs. Once we were all together we told the others how we were planning on travelling and that we were gonna get going as soon as we could. The other three seemed pretty happy with this, especially Mikey who didn't even try to hide his excitement at going back to the temple. I have no idea why he'd suddenly decided he's so attached to the place but I didn't ask him about it. Besides, I wasn't sure I'd be able to get a straight answer out of him if I did.

We decided that we'd hit the road a little after noon. Normally we'd start a trip like this in the morning to make the most of the daylight there was, but seeing as we'd gotten a better idea of what the area looked like on our way here, we figured we could get a good distance and hit a roadside inn before nightfall. This guess work was thanks mostly to Donny who's a lot better at guesstimating than I was. I took his word for it and we agreed that at noon we'd all be ready to get this show on the road again.

We gathered our gear from the room we'd used and after Usagi paid the innkeeper what we owed we decided to take a last look around town before we left. Donny seemed eager to grab his last chance of checking out a town although what he was planning to do was any-one's guess. Raph didn't seem to care much but he ran off with Mikey anyway. I wasn't sure what they were planning to do exactly but I wasn't really sure I wanted to know. It sounded like the kind of mischief I was best left out of. As long as they didn't get into trouble with either the guards or the police force I was sure they could take care of themselves. That left Usagi and me to do the more sensible things like stock up on water and food for the trip.

"There is nothing you wanted to do before we leave?" Usagi said, drawing water from one of the town's wells to fill his strange, bamboo 'water-bottle'.

I gave a shrug. "Not really. I'm not really into the whole 'sight-seeing' thing like Donny, and unlike Mike and Raph I don't think getting into trouble is a lot of fun."

"Indeed." He said, shaking the excess water from his hands and hissing from the cold. "I just thought I would ask."

"No sweat." I said as we turned to try and find somewhere that sold travel-friendly food.

As we walked, looking over the street traffic for any food sellers, we passed by yet another group of palace guards walking purposefully in the opposite direction. Usagi watched them as they passed us.

"Tch. You would think they are at war with the military force in this town." He said almost irritably.

"At least we know they weren't lying when they said they didn't need us." I said, with a shrug and a smile.

"I suppose that is true." He said, watching the backs of the guards before turning to the front again, shaking his head lightly. "But I stand by my opinion that there is still something very strange going on in this town."

"And I say you may be right, but what are we suppose to do about it? It's none of our business and what are the five of us suppose to do against a guy with his own fortress anyway?" I said.

"You would be surprised." Usagi said thoughtfully, turning to stare at the silhouette of the Palace as we passed by it.

"Yeah yeah. 'One man can make a difference', 'History is filled with people who were able to change the world', 'a single grain of rice can tip the scale' I know I know." I said with mock annoyance.

He turned to throw me a look. "'a single grain of rice'? I have not heard that one before."

"I think it's from a movie or something." I said dismissively.

"Ah." He said. "One of those abominations on that box of your's"

I burst out laughing at this. "Right."

"Still." He said, going serious again. "I wish we could have found out what is suppose to be happening here, if only to settle my curiosity."

"I don't think it's possible for your curiosity to get settled." I said, still grinning to myself.

He gave a light laugh at this. "I suppose that is true, but I cannot help it. If I sense some element of foul play or strange circumstances I feel the urge to investigate. Why, I do not know since it almost always gets me into more trouble than I prefer to be in. I will not be surprise if it ends up being the death of me one day."

"Ok woah! Mood killer!" I said, my grin instantly breaking and fading away. "Don't talk like that man, I don't need to hear stuff like that so early in the morning."

He blinked at me and shrugged but said nothing.

"Look I agree with you there's something weird going on here, but we got our own problems. If you wanna obsess over something how about trying to figure out what we're suppose to do about this whole locked portals thing." I said, anxious to get the topic away from the sudden dark turn it'd taken.

"I am afraid I have no answers for us there." Usagi sighed. "All the ideas I can come up with are childishly simple and would not work."

"Like?" I urged.

"We could try and find this person trying to invade world and tell him to 'cut it out'." he said.

"Yeah, I'm not sure that'd work." I said, managing a smile again.

"I did say they were childish plans." he said, grinning back.

"You didn't say they were stupid too." I said.

"Hey! I do not see you coming up with anything better!" He gave me a sulk which Mikey would've been proud of.

I shook my head at him. "That's 'cause I'm trying to put a little bit more thought into it."

"Oh yes. It is easy to think when you are not tired." He grumbled at me.

I laughed at him. "Oh _now_ you're tired! It must be that 'convenient tiredness' I've been hearing so much about lately."

"Go ahead and joke." He said, sticking his chest out slightly in a mock display of snobbishness. "Let us see how funny you are when you start having strange dreams at night."

"One step ahead of you there." I said, grinning victoriously at him. "Just because I'm not up at the crack of dawn doesn't mean I don't have my share of nightly weirdness thank you very much."

"Oh?" He blinked, dropping the game for a minute. "You had strange dreams as well?"

I shrugged lightly. "Kinda. They didn't bug me so much though. Just the usual batch of weirdness that you get after a particularly weird day."

"Like what?" He pressed, smiling slightly.

"Oh I dunno." I said, not feeling it was worth the effort trying to remember it. "Just stuff that popped up thanks to all the stuff we saw and heard yesterday, mostly to do with that witch woman. I think I might've actually dreamt about her but I can't remember, I don't take this stuff that seriously. Otherwise just a whole bunch of weird stuff based on what she said like portals and Lords and bridges between worlds and stuff. Like in actual bridges." I held my hands up, putting the tips of my fingers together to make an arc with them. "As in made of wood."

"Strange interpretation." Usagi said, obviously amused.

"If you wanna call it that sure. I think my brain just couldn't think of anything more inventive to get between dimensions." I said with a shrug.

"I do not know. I think it is pretty creative." Usagi said good-naturedly, turning to looking over the scene around us. "It is not the image I would have come up with for, if I may, 'bridging' the gap between two worlds."

I laughed. "Nice. Although Raph'd whap you for such a lame pun."

I turned to grin at him again and was a little stunned to see he'd disappeared. I stopped in my tracks, turning to look over my shoulder where, a few feet behind me, he'd come to a sudden halt, staring at the palace which was by now a good distance behind us. I blinked, turning to try and see what'd suddenly caused this whiplash of a change before I moved to stand beside him.

"What's up?" I asked. "You just stopped."

"Yes..." He said absently, still frowning at the castle. "I had a thought..."

"What about?" I asked, realising after I'd said it what a dumb question it was considering how he was staring at Nagahashi's fortress.

"Something you said." He said, biting on his lip thoughtfully.

"What did I say?" I frowned. I didn't remember saying anything insightful or anything. Nothing that'd cause such a sudden introspective moment at least.

"You mentioned a bridge between worlds." Usagi said.

"Yeah?" I said.

"Bridge..." Usagi said quietly to himself. "_Hashi..."_

I frowned at this, going silent. I turned to stare at Nagahashi's palace as well, trying to see if I could figure out what he was thinking at all. I frowned, turning to look back at him.

"Oh you don't seriously think this Nagahashi guy's got anything to do with this whole mess do you?" I said, realising what train of thought he was following.

"You yourself admitted there is something strange going on in this place." Usagi said, still staring at the building.

"Yeah! As in the guy's a little paranoid and has too many guards! Not that he's decided to go all Stargate on us and invade another dimension! That's a pretty big leap don't you think?" I said with a light frown.

"It makes about as much sense as anything else that has happened lately." Usagi pointed out.

"When exactly _was_ the last time you slept?" I sighed at him. "I think you're drawing weird conclusions because you've been sleeping two hours a night for the past three days."

"Hmm." He said, half-turning away from the sight of the palace again.

"And even if it was true, so what? What are we suppose to do?" I said, turning to the front again, urging him to follow.

"I do not know that yet." Usagi said, falling in step beside me again.

"Well I say it's just the lack of sleep talking." I said. "I mean how would the guy even teleport to another dimension exactly? Why would he plan to invade it? Don't you think his neighbours or townspeople would notice a little detail like their lord being bat-squeak insane?"

"And yet there definitely _is_ something strange going on in these parts." Usagi argued calmly. "Why the overly large military presence? Why the strange visit from a recruiter who Nagahashi's representative denies exists? Why the sudden dismissal from him after he seemed nervous about what we might know regarding this plan his lord is suppose to have? Why are there routine processions of samurai and gunmen leaving the town and heading North?"

"And what does any of that have to do with invading other dimensions?" I countered.

"I do not know." He said with a frustrated sigh. "But there is something _strange_ happening here Leonardo. And if you are stuck here due to some person doing strange things regarding invasions and other dimensions and there are strange things happening right here regarding a lord and his samurai do you not think that is worth questioning a little?"

I grumbled. "You got me there." I shook my head as soon as I said this, as if to smother the sentence again. "But what do you want us to do exactly? Knock on the guy's door and say 'hey there it's us again! Listen, we kinda didn't believe you last time when you said nothing weird is going on, d'you mind if we take a look around? We're just a little suspicious that's all'."

"No of course not." he scoffed. "But that does not mean we cannot look into this a little further. We could follow one of these processions and see where they go."

"In the middle of winter without things like inns and temples to keep us from freezing?" I said.

"Well.. ..We could... We could try and ask some-one." He said.

"Like who?" I said, frowning at him hard.

"I do not know." He said frustratedly. "Just some-one who would talk. A drunken guard or a palace maid or servant. I do not know."

"You're grasping at straws." I said bluntly. "If you can find some-one who'd tell you what's going on then great. But I really don't think you're gonna run into any-one in town that'd tell you what you'd wanna know. Why would they? Why would this lord guy tell every samurai that serves him exactly what his plans are?"

"He would not." Usagi admitted. "It would have to be of some-one who has closer contact with him."

"And I doubt you're gonna find any-one like _that_ wandering around the town streets." I said, drilling the point home.

"No." He sighed. "They would be residence in the palace."

"Exactly." I nodded.

"Which means we would have to infiltrate the palace if we want to learn anything." He said.

"O geez-" I slapped my face, lowering my head for a moment before snapping it up again. "D'you have any idea how many ways we'd get killed pulling off a stunt like that?"

He said nothing, frowning lightly to himself in thought.

I sighed, dropping my shoulders slightly. "Look, I get you wanna know what's going on, but it's not worth getting killed over right?"

He sighed in defeat, sinking. "No. I suppose it is not."

"Good." I gave a nod, turning to pick up our pace again.

"But," He said and I heard myself give a groan. "If there is even the smallest hint of a possibility that this Nagahashi is the cause for you not being able to go home, would you not want to investigate it?"

"Are you saying this because you wanna help us, or because _you_ wanna know what's going on?" I said accusingly, starting to feel annoyed by all this.

"Both." Usagi answered with a light frown. "But do not misunderstand me Leonardo, I am not trying to exploit your misfortune just for my own satisfaction. You know I would not do that. It is against my nature."

I gave another groan, running both hands over my face, aware of the lack of mask brushing against my fingers. "Ok ok, yeah I know you wouldn't do that." I shook my head with a sigh. "But still, is it really worth getting killed over?"

"Who says any-one would get killed?" Usagi said. "I have infiltrated fortresses before using stealth."

"Oh yeah?" I arched a brow at him, crossing my arms. "And was it still that 'stealthy' when you left?"

"Well..." He broke eye-contact with me, suddenly finding the sky very interesting. "Not as of such no..."

"Well there you go." I said. "And we've already established how overly-guarded this whole place is. You'd need to be a magician to get in there, and we both know you're not one who's overly skilled with sneaking around."

"That is true." he said, suddenly locking his eyes on mine again. "That is more a ninja technique."

I threw my hands up, backing away from him slightly. "Oh no! No you don't! Don't go dragging me into this! I'm still trying to talk you out of it!"

He sighed almost mournfully and nodded, turning to look wistfully behind himself again at the palace. "I suppose you are right. I cannot ask such a burden from you. I suppose if it is my curiosity then I must settle it myself, even though as you said, my skills at stealth are not as honed as your's. But I suppose this is something I will have to do by myself... and pray for the best..."

"Oh _please!_" I rolled my eyes at him. "Why don't you throw in 'I must follow my destiny' and 'I can only do what I feel is right' in there as well? You can ham it up all you want but I see what you're doing!"

"I am sure I have no idea what you are talking about." Usagi said with an almost agonizingly innocent expression.

"Right." I snorted. "So you're basically saying that you're feeling insane enough about this to try something stupid all by yourself if we don't help?"

He gave a shrug. "I can hardly force you to do something against your will."

"And yet you know full well my brothers and I have a hundred times the stealth training you do. What's more you're even more aware of the fact that there's no way any of us would just sit back and let you get turned into chunky salsa," I made a noise in the back of my throat. "Not to mention you're the one who's gotta lead us back to Sanshobo's temple so it'd be kind of a drag if you ended up getting yourself killed."

"Aw. Is that the only reason you are concerned about me?" Usagi said with a smile.

I shook my head, rubbing at my eyes with a forefinger and thumb. "You're doing this on purpose aren't you? You wanna see how many insane things you can put us through while we're at your mercy don't you?"

"I will say 'yes' if it makes you feel better." Usagi said with a grin.

I gave a long sigh. "Fine. I guess we can't exactly let you run off and do something completely mental all by yourself."

Usagi gave a chuckle. "I am only trying to help you get home."

"Sure. Keep telling yourself that." I said with a tired tone of voice.

We continued our walk through the town for a few minutes, not saying anything as I tried to figure out just how in the heck I was gonna explain this little bit of madness to the others. They'll think I'd lost my mind, I just know it. Hell I wasn't even sure if I was still sane myself. How the heck did I get talked into this? I mean, infiltrate a lord's palace? I must be crazy. I mean sure, I'd done it before with the Shredder and various other gangs and mobs not to mention Bishop and the Utroms. But that was always because we were in the middle of a do or die situation. Breaking into a guarded fortress based on a _hunch_? It goes against the absolute core of my being. Everything that made me who I was was screaming at me, telling me what a giant idiot I was for putting the people I cared about in danger. Raph was gonna have a fit, Donny was gonna question my sanity, rightfully so, and Mikey was probably gonna run into the hills by himself to go back to Sanshobo's temple. How the _hell_ did I get talked into this thing?

"Leonardo?" Usagi suddenly said, breaking through my thoughts. I turned to frown at him, hoping he wasn't gonna try talking me into doing something even crazier although right now I had a hard time trying to think of anything that could top this.

Instead though, he was walking with his gaze dropped, speaking calmly. "I am sorry... I know I have no right to ask something so dangerous and reckless of you."

I sighed to myself. "Well I'm not gonna let you get killed."

"This is more than just me trying to scratch an itch though." he said, lifting his gaze to stare ahead of himself. "Trust me, I would not want to put you or your family in needless danger, but something inside me is telling me we need to investigate this. If it turns out to be nothing but nosiness on my part then I shall beg you your forgiveness. But something is telling me we cannot leave this without investigating it. There is something important here, and we will regret it if we do not look into it. Although I know this is hardly a good argument to convince you."

I said nothing at this, thinking it over as we walked onwards through street sellers and townspeople, children playing with crude toys and chasing some stray _tokage_, woman gossiping with each other, men carrying large packages on their backs and serious looking samurai who gave every-one else suspicious and paranoid glances.

"One time... " I said thoughtfully after the pause had dragged itself out. "We found some-one in the sewer we didn't know. We were scared that she'd tell the world about us and we'd be in danger. We didn't know what to do or if we could trust her. But Master Splinter said we could let her go, because he had a gut instinct that it'd be ok."

"And how did that end?" Usagi asked.

"She became one of the best things that'd ever happened to us." I said, unable to stop myself from smiling.

Usagi said nothing and we continued our walk in silence again for a while.

"That is a good story." He said after a few minutes.

"Let's hope this one has a happy ending too." I said.

**Xxxxx**

_._


	24. The Palace

_I'm so sorry for the long hiatus guys. I was off making cartoons (no lie). The show is finished though so I'm unemployed again for the moment so hopefully I can get some work done on this fic. But even if there's another hiatus I promise, this fic has not been forgotten. _

_I also want to thank every-one for the messages of support. I've read all of them and thank you so much for the input._

_I hope every-one had a good Chrismakwanzachannakah!_

**Xxxxx**

"D'you see 'em yet?" Raph called up to me.

"Not yet." I called back from my perch on the inn's roof.

"They're late." Raph grumbled, more to himself than to me. He crossed his arms and leaned himself against the wall of the building, frowning moodily. Being fluent in the 'Raph frown' I recognised the concern as he tried to intimidate the ground with a hard stare.

"They're probably just looking for food or something." I said, leaning over the edge of the roof so I could look at him properly.

Raph didn't say anything but made a few meaningless noises. I shrugged and climbed back onto the building properly, looking around for either Leo, Usagi or Donny. I couldn't see any of them yet, but it was a big town and the inn's roof wasn't as high as it could be. I was getting funny looks from the people down on the street walking past us but they left us alone. I didn't mind the attention. It felt kinda good in a way. We didn't get to show off our ninja-ness very often so I was happy letting them see a pro. Raph seemed fine with letting me goof around as long as I kept an eye open for the rest of our group.

"Hmmph." Raph grunted, lifting his gaze from the ground to look around again. "Where are they?"

"Maybe they got lost." I said back, watching a little kid run past chasing an almost identical kid. "It's a big town."

"Even Don?" Raph said.

"Donny's not perfect Raph. It's not like he's got a GPS built into his head or anything you know." I sighed, rolling my eyes at him since he couldn't see me.

"Well I don' like that over-achiever Leo or brainiac Don are late." he grumbled. "Somethin' ain't right."

"Aw, quit your worrying." I said, sitting down so I could swing my legs over the side of the roof.

"Should probably go look for 'em." Raph said thoughtfully.

"Nah, then they'd get here and you'd be gone." I said with a grin.

"Hmmph." Raph said again.

I watched the crowd of people walk past us some more, but I was getting kinda bored of it. I didn't say it out loud but I was kinda hoping the others would get here soon so we could go already. I didn't like waiting around like this when we actually had something we wanted to do. I didn't mind waiting until now to leave, but now it was just getting dragged out and I was getting tired of it.

A couple of girls in brightly coloured dresses stared at me before running off, giggling to each other. I suddenly felt stupid and dropped down to stand next to Raph instead.

"Leo and Usagi are probably just talking and forgot what time it is." I said, dusting off the knees of my pants. "And you know Donny, he probably found something interesting and forgot we even exist."

"Mmm." Raph said, but I wasn't sure whether he agreed with me or not.

I sighed, walking closer and leaning my shell against Raph's wall, crossing my arms behind my head. I didn't know what else to say. I seemed to be the only one doing the talking and I didn't really feel like trying to think up new things to say every 5 minutes. I went back to people-watching, even though the change of view didn't really make it any more exciting than it was on the roof. A few of the guards walked past us but they looked like they were on lunch break or something, talking with each other about stuff I couldn't hear. I blinked, pushing off the wall to watch them go.

"Is it just me or are there a lot of those guys walking around here?" I asked.

"It ain't just you." Raph said, following my gaze.

"This Lord guy must be kinda paranoid huh?" I asked, relaxing to lean against the wall again.

"Or he's plannin' ta do somethin' with all of 'em." Raph said, watching their backs as they walked away.

"Not everything's a conspiracy Raph." I said, turning to focus back on the street.

"Why're you so eager ta ignore whatever's happin' in this place?" Raph said, giving me a sideways glance.

I gave a small huff and hooked my thumbs into my obi, determined not to look at him. "I'm not. I just don't think whatever's going on in this place is important enough to get mixed up in."

"Ah. But ya _do_ admit there's somethin' weird here." Raph said, his face twisting into a victorious grin.

I felt myself frown. "I just don't want to get involved ok? I wanna go back to the temple and wait until this portal thing sorts itself out so we can go home. Why's that such a bad thing?"

"It ain't." Raph said, dropping the annoying smile. "But I don't get why you're so hung up about what's goin' on here." he turned to look at me properly. "And I mean _really_ hung up about it. Ya don't usually let this kinda thing bug ya so much."

I gave something of a mix between a groan and a whine, dropping my shoulders in protest. I really didn't feel like spilling my guts right now. "There's nothing to tell. I just wanna go home and while I'm waiting for that to happen I just wanna relax ok? That's all."

Raph stared at me for a moment before he gave a sigh in defeat, leaning back again. "Whatever."

I kept quiet after that, frowning to myself as I let the wall support me, trying to copy Raph's expression to see if he'd notice.

"What's with that look?" Leo's voice suddenly said, followed closely by Leo and Usagi themselves.

I instantly perked up, pushing off the wall to grin at them happily. "Oh hey, there you are!"

"You're late." Raph said curtly.

"We had something we wanted to do before we met up with you guys." Leo said, looking around as he spoke. "Where's Don?"

"Ain't here yet." Raph said, still frowning irritably at them. "What things?"

"We were doing a thorough inspection of the Palace walls." Usagi said. I noticed neither him or Leo were carrying anything like food.

"What? What for?" Raph's frown deepened as he turned from Usagi back to Leo.

"I'll explain, but we should wait for Don first." Leo said, turning to look behind him and up the street with a concerned frown.

"Like hell." Raph said sharply. "What've you two been plannin' behind our backs _this _time?"

The two of them blinked at him before exchanging glances with each other. Usagi arched his eyebrows at Leo meaningfully before apparently getting distracted by nothing, turning to look away from the conversation, leaving Leo to do the talking. Nice. I needed to remember that trick.

"Well," Leo said in a voice that suggested he was barricading the fort against a 'Raph attack'. "Usagi and I were talking about what we should do about this whole 'locked portal' thing. Especially since there's apparently a person behind it."

"Yeah, a person in another dimension." Raph reminded him, unfolding his arms.

"Right." Leo nodded. "But the guy whose trying to invade him is not. So we were talking about this and what we knew when Usagi pointed out that there's a lot of weird things happening in this town we're in."

"Which I already know." Raph said. "Get to the point Leo."

"Well, I mentioned something to Usagi about building bridges between worlds, and this kinda led to Lord Nagahashi since the word 'bridge' is in his name. So we were thinking with all the weird stuff happening to us with portals that're locked because some-one's trying to invade, and this town being overly full of samurai and guards plus the weird procession of troops that's supposedly a regular thing around here, maybe, just maybe, the guy trying to invade using a portal is this Lord Nagahashi." Leo said, getting it all out quickly before either of us could interrupt.

"Kind of a stretch ain't it?" Raph said.

"Well, we are by no means convinced." Usagi added, giving Leo a sideways glance before focusing back on us. "But it did seem a strange coincidence and one that deserves investigating further before we just write it off. After all, if this provides us with a way to get you home then we should not merely ignore it without understanding the situation a little better."

"So what're you sayin'? We go around asking people stuff?" Raph said, looking slightly confused. "Don't seem like the best idea ta me. I don't think every Tom Dick and Harry will know what a big Lord guy is plannin' on doin'."

"Right." Leo said quickly. "If we're to find anything out we'll need to go to the source. Which is what me and Usagi have been talking about and how exactly we'd do it."

"Do what exactly?" Raph said, starting to sound angry. "You're tap dancin' around the answer."

Leo sighed, running a hand over his head. "Ok ok. I guess there's no avoiding it." he turned to face both me and Raph. "We're thinking we should get inside this Lord's palace and see what we can learn in there."

Raph stared at him. He blinked for a moment before his eyes narrowed. "You ain't serious."

"Look, if we're gonna learn anything we're gonna learn it in there." Leo said, jerking a thumb at the palace. "If this _is_ the guy responsible for getting us locked out of our home then we have a right to know. I say we have a right to ask some questions and get some answers."

"Ya mean get slaughtered like pigs!" Raph said angrily. "Seriously Leo what the hell's gotten into you? Ya seem ta have made a new game outta how much crazy stupid crap ya can do while you're here! Why? Is the cold frostin' over your brain or somethin'?"

"Leonardo was actually against the idea." Usagi said, loud enough to over-power Raph's ranting. "Very strongly I might add. I had to convince him into doing this which I assure you, was no small task."

"Don't you take the bullet for him Usagi!" Raph snapped. "I don't care if ya had ta break his arm ta do it, point is Leo's let himself get talked inta this! I mean what are ya thinkin' bro? D'you honestly think we can just slip in the front door and ask the first guy we see? We'd be cut down so fast we wouldn't know what hit us!"

"I know that." Leo said with a hard frown. "But isn't it worth the risk Raph? I mean what's the alternative? Going back to the temple and sitting around _hoping_ this thing fixes itself? What if it doesn't? What if we stay at the temple and weeks, no _months_ go by and nothing happens huh? D'you wanna sit around just waiting, not knowing when or even if this is gonna work itself out? If we have a chance of getting some kind of control over the situation we should take it."

Raph gave a growl, locking his hands behind his head and turning away from Leo, doing a little circular walk as he tried to reject getting talked into this.

"I mean it's not like we haven't done something this nuts before." Leo went on, talking to Raph's shell. "We've broken into places much bigger than this with a lot more guards and a lot more security. We've dealt with guns, laser-canons, giant bugs, aliens, invisible ninjas while dodging laser grids, security cameras, turrets and, oh yeah, the _empty vacuum of space_. A well guarded palace belonging to a Lord is tricky sure, but we can pull it off if we move carefully."

"Yeah but we'd still be stickin' our necks out for somethin' we don't even know will lead to anythin'." Raph said, unhooking his hands and spinning to look back at Leo. "I mean what would we be lookin' for exactly? Do we even know? And let's say this guy ain't got nothin' to do with this whole thing, are we just gonna run around the place like idiots thinkin' there's somethin' ta find when there isn't?"

"We will ask some-one who could be coerced into talking." Usagi said. "The guards will not speak and you are right, they will kill us on sight, but if we could find something like a servant who might be able to tell us anything they might have overheard or know."

"And if ya ask some-one and they don't know, then what? Just let 'em go ta raise the alarm and ask the next guy that comes along?" Raph said, crossing his arms again. "This is crazy guys! We'll get sliced inta bite-sized pieces!"

"Not if we think it through carefully and work methodically." Leo said. "We'll just need to watch ourselves and go it slow."

Raph said nothing to this and there was a pause. Leo and Usagi were both staring at him eagerly, waiting to hear if he'd change his mind. I suddenly became aware of how frustrated and annoyed I felt and realised it was because both Leo and Usagi were putting all their effort and focus into trying to win Raph over. Neither of them had even bothered to ask me how I felt about all this. I felt myself frown hard and I turned to stare at Raph too.

"C'mon Raph." Leo implored when the pause grew too long. "We need you on this one. It's not just some walk in the woods this time. I gotta know you'll have my back on this."

Raph made a noise, shaking his head slightly as he pulled a face, looking away from them. "If you're gonna beg then I guess I ain't got much of a choice." he shot Leo a dirty look. "_Again_."

Both Leo and Usagi seemed to relax at this. Leo gave a nod. "I'm sorry bro. I'll make it up to you I promise."

"Yeah yeah." Raph waved him off. "Just do me a favour and try not ta get any of us killed. And if we don't make it outta this thing, I hope you know it's gonna be your fault."

"No, it will be mine." Usagi said purposefully. "And believe me, that is not something I plan to have weighing on my conscience."

"Good." Raph gave a nod. "Or I'll make sure ya never hear the end of it."

"Fair enough." Usagi nodded.

"Wait a minute!" I interrupted before I could stop myself. "Isn't anybody gonna ask me what _I_ think about all this? I mean hello! What, am I invisible or something?"

All three of them turned to stare at me with wide-eyes. I frowned back at them, kicking myself for not just keeping my mouth shut.

Usagi gave Leo a guilty look. Leo frowned at me lightly. "I thought you'd be fine with this. I mean you've been saying you're anxious to go home right? I thought you'd be happy to do something to make that happen."

I sank as my frown darkened slightly, annoyed that I couldn't really argue with that. "Well... What if I wasn't huh? What if I just wanted to lie low for a while or something?"

"Do you?" Leo asked meaningfully.

I gave a groan, hunching my shoulders as I tucked my hands in my obi again. "... I just wanna go home." I mumbled.

Leo gave a nod, obviously satisfied with that. I swore at him quietly in my head.

"We checked out the palace walls before we came back. I'll show you were we thought the best way to get in would be." Leo was saying to Raph, having lost interest in me again. I sulked to myself quietly, getting a little bit of comfort when I saw Usagi noticed and was watching me sympathetically.

"You're gonna hafta give me a debriefin' somewhere less public than the street though."Raph was saying. "I don't think I wanna tempt fate with all these guards walkin' around."

"I agree." Usagi said, turning away from me and back to the conversation. "There was a smaller inn than our's a little while back where we can talk it over without so many suspicious ears around."

"Sounds good." Raph nodded.

"Swell." I grumbled to myself, knowing no-one would listen.

"Sorry I'm late." An out of breath voice said behind me.

Donny doubled over, his hands on his knees as he caught his breath. "There was a street performer and I sort of forgot myself. I raced back when I realised the time." He straightened, wiping his forehead with the back of his hand before turning to blink at the rest of us. "Did I miss anything?"

This was a stupid plan. It was a stupid plan and I really really hated it. And not just because I was all fired up to go back to Sanshobo's temple. Even if I didn't wanna go home so badly and we were having a holiday and were all relaxed and enjoying our time here without any worries this would _still_ be an amazingly stupid plan. And I'm not just saying that because I'm freezing my tail off either!

You see, for this ringer of an idea we'd had to take off the nifty outfits Usagi had given us so they wouldn't get caught on something or tear or make us too easy to spot while we're doing crazy things in the middle of the night. Now normal people might think of wearing like black outfits or something to better blend in with the shadows and stuff, but being the awesome turtles that we are we didn't need any cheap tricks like that. Besides we didn't actually have anything like that. Unfortunately being able to blend in with the shadows wasn't helping with the whole 'middle of winter' thing.

I gave Usagi a dirty look over my shoulder as Leo took him by the arm to hoist him up onto the walls surrounding the castle. Of course _he_ got to keep the shirt on his back. Not to mention he's got all that fluffiness to keep him toasty. Meanwhile us of the more 'need warmth to stay awake' variety have to make do with what nature gave us. What a rip off. It wasn't fair.

The hilt of a sai knocked against my head lightly.

"Hey dingus. Keep the line movin' will ya? We wanna get in and out as fast as we can here."

I grumbled slightly and turned my dirty look to Raph instead. "Alright alright I'm moving." I mumbled, moving further down the wall to give Leo and Usagi more space, following the silhouette of Donny as he scouted ahead, checking the ground below for the positions of the various guards as well as trying to find the best place to get inside.

"Will you two keep it down?" Leo hissed urgently at me and Raph. "We're trying to keep a low profile here!"

"Oh sure." Raph sneered at him in a hushed voice, straightening. "You wanna keep a low profile and then you and the rabbit cook up this crazy plan ta sneak into high security central! Gettin' mixed messages here Leo, I gotta tell ya."

"I said we're gonna sneak in. I didn't say I wanted us to get caught." Leo said testily, following me and Donny while giving Raph the evil eye. I noticed him straighten himself slightly, trying to make himself taller than our bro to make a point. "Besides, I didn't think a little breaking and entering mission would spook you this much. Have your skills really slipped that much since we've been here?"

I heard Raph snort, mostly to brush Leo's remark off as stupid but I could hear the slightly annoyed tone he was trying to hide. "Whatever happened to the whole 'only get inta trouble when ya don't got a choice' way of doin' things?"

"Well I would think being stuck here with no way to get home counts as a 'don't got a choice' situation." Leo said back.

"Would both of you be so kind as to keep quiet?" a rather annoyed Usagi piped up, pushing past Leo slightly to put himself between the two of them as we made our way further down the wall.

"Sheesh. Alright already." Raph backed down, turning to the front and speeding up slightly. "_some-one's _ cranky about bein' up this late."

I didn't hear a reply and we fell silent, focusing on what we had to do instead. Donny had led us to where the outer wall around the castle was closest to one of the smaller building's roofs. He waited for the rest of us to catch up before turning to Leo.

"It's here right?" He asked, his voice much softer and cautious than the rest of ours had been.

Leo nodded. "We jump the wall to that roof, then we make our way towards the main building and jump to that pointy bit there." He traced along the scene in front of us with his hand, indicating a roof ledge on the main building that faced the smaller roof. I didn't feel like mentioning that that was gonna be a tricky jump to do if we were gonna try and keep quiet at the same time.

"We move along it until we get to that window." Leo went on. "Once we get that open we're in."

"And then what?" Raph asked. "We bonk heads till some-one tells us what's goin' on?"

"If you feel like getting killed fine." Usagi muttered. "We need to find a maid or one of the other female servants. Not a lantern bearer though. The upset light would be too big of a give away to any lookouts who might be keeping an eye on things."

"Woah woah. So we're gonna be beatin' up on a girl?" Raph said, snapping his head to the samurai. "Neither of you said anythin' about that!"

"No guard worth his mettle would betray his Lord, within his own castle no less." Usagi said, turning to look at Raph. "The maids within are no less loyal, but would be far less willing to sell their lives, especially if they are young and have not been in service that long yet. Some of the older ones might put up a fiercer fight than a guard though."

"Great, so we ain't just lookin' for a girl but a young girl cause they scare easier and would be more afraid for her life than some-one older. Great." Raph went on.

"It's not like we're gonna kill her Raph, what's gotten into you?" Donny said, cocking a brow at him.

Raph made a noise in his throat, crouching lower on the roof and giving the ground a once over absentmindedly. "I just don' like the idea of roughin' up girls when they can't fight back." He grumbled.

"We won't rough them up." Leo reassured him, turning to look over our plotted path again.

"How do we get 'em to tell us anything then?" I asked, tensing and untensing my hands as I adjusted my footing, getting read to make the jump to the next roof.

"_They _don't know we won't hurt them." Leo said, crouching slightly before making the jump to the next roof.

"That's cruel." I mumbled to myself, following him.

We managed to get to the window without so much as a guard looking up. Donny pried open the window for us and we slipped inside, Leo holding up the rear before following and closing the wooden window behind us again.

The last time we were here this place was very creepy. Now we were here without some-one escorting us and keeping any hidden guards from stabbing us, and guess what? It's even creepier. I just hoped Leo wasn't gonna make us split up or something.

"Don, you and Mikey go that way, Raph you're with me and Usagi." Leo said with a hushed voice.

I moaned, dropping my shoulders in open protest. "C'mon Leo! Are you really that eager to get us all killed?"

"Stop complaining and do it." Leo ordered. "You find some-one to ask, you ask them and then get out, regardless of what they tell you. We meet at the inn just before dawn."

"Got it." Donny said, tapping the hand clutching his bo to his forehead in a salute before turning and nudging me in the direction Leo wanted us to go.

"Nice knowing you guys." I mumbled as I followed after my brainy bro. Leo said nothing as the three of them went the other way.

"You'd think he'd at least let Raph come with us for some muscle or something." I muttered to Donny.

"He needs Raph to watch his back." Donny replied. "Usagi's invaluable in a fight, but I don't know how much use he's gonna be as far as espionage goes."

"Don't let him hear you say that." I said, shooting Donny a grin. "He'll probably demonstrate his mad stealth skills by putting the jump on you and kicking your butt into next week!"

"If it means we get this done without something going wrong then he can be my guest." Donny replied, looking around the long corridor with a slight frown, gripping his bo firmly.

I turned my attention to the path ahead of us too. It was very long and very dark, despite the paper lanterns that lit our way every few paces. It was like the dark wooden floor ate up all the light made by the lamps, leaving only enough so that we weren't stuck in pitch darkness. I wondered whether people being asleep this late at night might have something to do with the darkness of the place but decided that that probably wasn't the case. This place struck me as probably always having some-one guarding it in some way or form. If this whatever-his-name-is guy was so paranoid to have the outside town crawling with guards I'd hate to see how many of them he's got crammed into the walls.

I remembered when we came here during the day the last time, and how even though we couldn't see them, I could tell there were guards behind hidden doors and walls watching us as we walked past. I suddenly felt myself becoming a little paranoid myself as I gave the passing wooden walls suspicious glances.

"Hey er... Donny?" I started, moving to walk a little closer to him.

"What?" He asked absently, still looking around.

"Shouldn't we like, get up into the roof or something? Ya know... somewhere where there probably aren't trained swordsman hiding in the walls ready to jump out and kill us?"

"What do you think I'm doing?" Donny hissed. "Instead of talking why not help me look for a pillar or something we can get up?"

"Geez. Some-one's in a bad mood." I grumbled, turning to try and find a way to climb up to the rafters as well.

"That's rich coming from you." Donny commented, stopping for a moment to stare at a wall that looked exactly like every other paper wall.

"What's that suppose to mean?" I whined, a little louder than I'd intended.

"Don't give me the innocent act. You've been acting moody the whole day." Donny said, although he seemed more focused on the wall than talking to me. He walked closer to it, frowning to himself as he placed his fingers against it carefully.

"Do you blame me?" I said with a frown and a slight shrug. "I was kinda hoping we were gonna spend the night getting ready to go somewhere less creepy than this town, not sneak into the mayor of Creepy Town's friggen palace!"

"Well if you'd stop whining for one second and actually focused on what we were doing maybe we could get it over with and get out of here." Donny grumbled, putting his fingers against a wooden bar on the wall. "Here, keep a look out will you? I wanna check out this room."

"Room?" I frowned, staring at the wall. It didn't look any different from any other wall we'd passed. However when Donny tugged on the thin wooden beam it slid open, revealing a smaller room behind it. I blinked as I watched him slip inside.

"Just keep watch ok?And lemme know if any-one comes this way." He said.

"Wait! Where are you going?" I said, peering inside the room behind the wall. There was absolutely nothing interesting in it. Just some walls and a lamp.

"This room should lead to one of the larger private rooms. I want to see if I can find some-one we can talk to." Donny said, walking down it, waving a hand behind his back at me. "Stay there."

"And if you run into this Naga-whatsit guy himself? Then what?" I hissed after him, shifting my weight from foot to foot.

"Stay there." He said again, disappearing around a corner.

I whined to myself, turning back the the now empty hallway I was standing in. I looked around it's dark walls and shiny blackish floor and the nearest paper lamp. I could see the small flame behind the dull eggshell white stuttering slightly, causing the light to flicker irritatingly. The roof above me was criss-crossed with large, heavy wooden beams, the ceiling beyond them black and invisible.

Man. I wish I was invisible right now. I gave a small huff of a breath, trying to focus on the whole 'scanning the area' thing like Sensei taught us. Listening for any faint sounds or any slight vibration in the wood of the floor that might mean some-one was walking this way, but I couldn't help but be distracted by the empty gaping doorway in front of me through which Donny seemed to have gone through to drop off the face of the earth. As much as I strained I couldn't pick up any trace of sound from his direction at all. I took that as a good thing. Or at least I hoped it was a good thing. It probably was. If something bad had happened this place would've been crawling with angry people carrying pointy things by now.

I was so focused on trying to listen for any traces of Donatello coming from the opened doorway that I didn't hear the sound of approaching footsteps coming down the end of the hall until the person making them staggered and gave a sharp gasp.

**Xxxxx**

_Update coming soon._


	25. Shadows and Sounds

_I don't own TMNT or UY._

**Xxxxx**

Damn was this place dark! I mean I know electricity wasn't invented yet or whatever, but couldn't they light a few more candles or invent a better lantern or something? This was crazy. I could barely make out the dark outlines of Leo and the rabbit in front of me as we made our way as quickly and quietly through the hallway as we could. For some weird reason we hadn't run into any-one yet but I decided not to mention this in case it invited bad luck or something.

"I expected to see more activity once we got inside." Usagi said. I swore to myself silently.

"Guess we just got lucky." Leo said.

"Or Unlucky." Usagi went on, looking around us as we marched further down the passage. "We still have to find some-one who we can ask some questions."

"Hey, I'm sure we'll find some-body if we keep lookin'" I said. "But if we can avoid the guards then I don't mind lookin' around a little longer for a maid or whatever it is we're lookin' for."

"I dunno about that." Leo said. He'd sped up to a slight trot, forcing me and Usagi to speed up as well. "We wanna get in and out as fast as we can."

"So you wanna beat the heads in of some guards instead?" I said irritably.

"I'd rather we just find some-one, ask some questions, and get out before any guards even know we're here" Leo said.

"And what if she screams or somethin'" I said, gritting my teeth slightly.

"Then we deal with it as it comes" Leo said, obviously trying to end the argument before it got started.

"Right." I grumbled. Now was not the time to get into it with him. I gotta tell ya though, my tolerance for Leo's insane ideas was very quickly running out.

Somewhere deep inside me I was starting to wonder whether I shouldn't start taking matters into my own hands. I know everything Leo's been doing lately, what with going to see this witch woman and trying to get some answers in this castle was him trying to do what he could to help us get home, but somehow I was starting to wonder if that was really the case. That's a horrible thing to say about the guy who's suppose to be our leader let alone my older brother but you gotta see it from my point of view. Usagi says he wants to trek across the country in the middle of a miniature ice age and Leo follows him. Usagi says we should go see a witch in the middle of the woods and Leo agrees. Usagi says we should break into a highly guarded palace and Leo can't say 'Yes' fast enough. Do you really blame me for starting to feel annoyed by this? I dunno what kind of luck's been following us so far but I almost couldn't believe nothing's gone wrong yet. It couldn't go on. If you add up the numbers something's gonna go wrong eventually if we keep pushing it like this.

Somewhere inside me, I felt a voice telling me I had to step in if things kept going this way. If Leo's being reckless and putting the rest of us in danger, I'm gonna have to ask Mikey and Don to listen to me for a while instead. I dunno if they would. They might turn their backs on me, opting to follow my oh-so talented big brother instead. It wouldn't be that surprising really. Donny and Mikey would follow me anywhere if I asked them to no problem. But if it came to picking between me and Leo? Leo always seemed to win. I dunno whether to say that's unfair or not. I felt it was but... I couldn't really blame them. Leo's always been better than me.

But not this time. Not if this is how he's acting. Not if these are the choices he's making. Something's gotta give.

"Hold up!" Leo hissed suddenly, shooting out an arm to halt me and Usagi. He backed up with a quick step, pressing himself more against the wall, his outstretched arm signalling for us to do the same.

I pressed my shell against the dark wood of the wall, listening to try and hear what'd caused him to duck for cover.

I could hear Usagi breathing next to me as I faced away from him, turning to look at the corner of the hallway as it turned sharply to the left in front of us. The light from the lamp against the far wall made a golden-yellow pool of light. It shone against the edges of Leo's face as I stared at the back of his head. Around the corner I could hear footsteps coming towards us. The were loud and keeping a steady pace. Whoever was coming this way wasn't trying to sneak around, nor were they charging towards us. They didn't know we were here yet.

I turned my head, facing Usagi instead as I looked past him to the hallway behind us. It was a long, straight tunnel with no turns, no doorways and no dark corners. There was nowhere to hide or disappear. Just a long corridor. We could run down it, but all it would be is a long, straight run, probably right into more people and then we'd be trapped.

I turned back to the corner in front of us. The footsteps were louder now. I felt more than saw Leo's hand rise very very slowly, taking careful hold of one of his swords before pulling it out of its sheath. The long metallic sound it made as the blade came free was silent but it felt like it was cutting through the air almost physically. The person around the corner came closer as I put both my hands around the handles of my sai.

A silhouette appeared in front of us against the wall we were facing as the person came within range of the nearest lantern. I could see the clear outline of a man, a proud topknot on his head, silken robes hanging from his shoulders and the sideways, straight shadow of his sword-hilt.

The shadow turned but, for some reason, did so before the guy had come around the corner. There was the sound of wood against wood and suddenly the wall in front of us was flooded by even more light as the door he'd opened caused a lamp to shine out into the hall.

"Tsunematsu-san wants to see you." The man's voice said to some-one out of sight.

"M-Me? What for?" A voice replied. It sounded completely opposite to the man's bark of an order.

"You can ask him yourself." The man's voice said as the shadow against the wall shifted and we tensed ourselves again.

There was the soft patter of light footsteps and a smaller shadow appeared beside the man's, clutching at a long robe so it could walk faster. It turned and trotted briskly in the opposite direction than us. The man's shadow watched it go before turning and following after it meaningfully.

All three of us breathed out loudly and sank against our wall.

"And that." I said, pushing away from it after a few moments. "Is what we call 'Kick startin' a heart attack'."

"Indeed." Usagi nodded. He patted his chest with a hand lightly as he moved away from the wall too, indicating his heart pounding. "I though our cover was blown before we even began."

"What d'you think that was about?" Leo asked in a hushed voice, peering around the corner to see into the hallway beyond it.

"Dunno. Don't care." I said, moving to stand beside him. He hadn't put his sword away yet. I wasn't gonna tell him to. "If some girl and some guy have a little fling while the Lord's back is turned it ain't really our business."

Leo pulled a face at me for a moment before turning to look back at the hallway, taking a few cautious steps into it. "D'you really think it's something innocent like that?"

"Is that kind of behaviour what you would refer to as 'innocent'?" Usagi asked with a frown, moving to follow him.

Leo shook his head hurriedly. "No no. I just mean... you don't think Mikey and Don ran into some trouble do you?"

"Yeah I do." I said, moving to push past him. He spun to give me a stare. "I think they got their paws on Mikey and Don and ta deal with the threat of two armed ninja in a Lord's palace they decided ta get their scariest maid ta give them a firm lecture about it."

"That's not funny Raph." Leo's voice said rather loudly as I walked past him to take the lead.

"Yeah well try and use yer head before ya make stupid comment like that." I said, not bothering to look at him.

I turned to look inside the room the maid had just come out of instead. The door had been made to look like part of the wall, but behind it was a sizeable room. There was a chest against one side of it with a rather expensive looking vase on top of it. Next to it lay a strange looking wooden thing with strings running across the top of it. Kinda looking like a cross between a guitar and a table.

"You really wanna make every part of this trip as stressful and unpleasant as you can don't you Raph?" Leo said, walking closer so he could stand beside me to give me his little leader-speech properly.

"Nope." I said, turning away from the empty room so I could meet his gaze, my eyes narrowing. "I'm merely tryin' ta counter the massive amount of crazy pills you've been takin' lately."

"What's that suppose to even _mean?_" Leo hissed, getting angry.

"You know exactly what it means." I said, clenching my teeth slightly, turning to face him full-on. "Ya wanna worry about Don and Mikey bein' ok then fine. Go ahead. I encourage it. But what kinda insanity have ya grown that ya put 'em in danger yerself and then worry about 'em because of it? Decide what ya wanna do Leo! Worry about 'em bein' safe or put 'em in danger, cuz doin' things the way ya have is really sendin' me mixed signals as ta what the hell you're thinkin'!"

"Are you saying." Leo hissed with a dangerous tone of voice. "That I _want_ to put my family in danger?"

"Actions speak louder than words bro." I said, my fingers digging into the palm of my hand as I clenched my fist.

"Would both of you be so kind as to _please_ Shut. Up." Usagi's voice snapped.

We both turned our heads to him sharply. He was walking towards us briskly, a deep frown on his face as he looked back and forth between us.

"If I have to listen to one more juvenile quarrel between the two of you while we are in this building I am leaving the both of you for the guards who will undoubtedly hear you if you keep this up. Now please keep your bickering in check until we are out of here or I am going to lose my temper."

He gave us each a sharp look as he physically pushed us aside to lead the way down the corridor. Leo and I stood speechless in the lamp-light, staring after him. I slowly turned to Leo. He blinked at me, looking just as dumb-struck as I was. I pulled a face and gave a small shrug. Leo frowned lightly, turning and trotting after our friend, me following close behind him.

"You ok Usagi?" Leo asked, keeping his voice low, probably to stop the guy from snapping at us again.

"I am tired." Usagi said bluntly. "I am tired of listening to both of you argue simply for the sake of arguing. If we could please just do what we came to do without sabotaging ourselves and get back to the inn I would be very happy."

Leo said nothing, turning his head to give me another look but I had nothing to offer him. I gave another small shrug at him. He stared at me for a moment before turning back to Usagi.

"Ok. Do you have any ideas of what we should do?"

"If that room we just passed is any indication to go by, then there must be more like it along this hallway. And if there is one maid who is straightening rooms up I am hoping there will be more. I am trying to find another door." Usagi said, his shoulders untensing ever so slightly as he turned to look at the wall on his left.

"Good plan." I said, speeding up to walk beside him. "But what about the guy with the sword? Ya think there's more of 'em around too?"

"Undoubtedly." Usagi said. He seemed to have calmed down, enough not to bite me or Leo's head off at least. "We will just have to try and avoid them."

"And how do we do that?" I asked with a frown.

"We try and stay away from them." Usagi said simply. "Or, if worse comes to worst, we silence them before they can raise the alarm. But if it comes to that we must make our escape quickly. A killed guard will buy us time to get out, but once it is found every man on the premises will be looking for us."

"Not to mention Mikey and Don." Leo said, more to himself than to either me or the rabbit.

I turned to look over the expression on his face. He had that slight frown. That classic Leo frown which meant one or more of our little team were out of his reach and possibly in trouble. He was doing the worry thing he'd gotten so good at through years of practice.

I gave a soft huff of a breath. "I'm sure they're fine Leo." I grumbled, feeling a little self-conscious. "They're smart enough ta high-tail it if they hear trouble. Donny's smart and Mikey's fast. They'll be ok."

Leo said nothing for a moment before he gave a small nod. I wasn't so stupid as to expect it made him feel better but I took it as him accepting my apology for earlier. Sometimes, when he wants to, Leo could translate what I wanted to say from what I actually said pretty good. Not always, but every now and then he got it right.

"Let us hope they will not need to make a quick escape."Usagi said, turning to look over his shoulder at me.

"Then let's keep our voices down and do this thing." Leo said, speeding up his walk slightly as he lowered his shoulders, giving the walls on either side of him quick glances as he went. I nodded, keeping myself alert as I followed him.

Usagi kept close, a light frown as he tried to pick out the doors from the walls on either side of us. I gave him a quick glance for a moment, giving him a once over as I matched his and Leo's step. Usagi wasn't a snappy guy. He had his moments but he could swallow it back pretty good. Were Leo and me really arguing that much more than usual? I dunno. I decided to try and keep a better check on my temper, or as much as I could any way. I didn't feel like pissing Usagi off as well as my brother.

It was a good thing I was thinking about the guy, otherwise I would've crashed into him when he came to a sudden stop right in front of me. I swayed on my toes slightly before stumbling into a side-step to stop myself from bumping into both him and Leo.

"Don't _do_ that!" I snapped, rather loudly.

"Did you hear that?" Usagi said, rooted to the spot as if he was almost too scared to move.

"Hear what?" Leo said, looking concerned.

"I heard a scream." Usagi said. I noticed the lack of a 'I thought I heard' at the beginning of that statement.

The three of us held out breaths as we each listened intently to the silence around us. A deep frown cut across my face.

"I don't hear a scream." I said, reaching out and taking the nearest person to me's arm, tugging on it to follow me back the way we'd come. "But I _do_ hear footsteps and they ain't waitin' around!"

"Duck back into that room!" Leo ordered sharply, turning around and running down the hallway.

I didn't need telling twice. The phantom footsteps chased us as we ran back to the spot where the light from the empty room still poured from its open door into the hallway.

"Who screamed?" Leo asked as we ran.

"I could not tell!" Usagi's reply came.

I clenched my jaw, turning into the doorway and quickly sliding the wall shut behind my brother and Usagi as we took cover. I backed away from it once I'd done so, staring at it as I raised my hands carefully to hover over the grips of my sai, waiting for armed guards to burst into the room. My fingers twitched slightly with the tension.

The seconds ticked by and the door remained defiantly shut. I had to force myself out of my ready stance as I stood straight again, breathing fast.

The three of us stood like stone in the middle of the room as we strained our ears. Trying to hear anything.

The footsteps sounded further away now, running somewhere deep within the halls of the palace away from us but other than that I couldn't hear anything.

'Who screamed?' I asked myself frantically as if I'd have an answer.

**Xxxxx**

_._


	26. Making an Exit

_I don't own TMNT or UY_

**Xxxxx**

We stared at each other stupidly for a few moments.

The girl who'd come around the corner into the hallway had almost dropped the wooden tray she'd been carrying when she saw me but had somehow managed not to send the small teapot and cup smashing to the floor. Small mercies am I right? If she had, who knows what kinda armed guard would come storming after her, ready to turn me into luncheon meat.

She was standing in the middle of the hallway, her hands gripping her tray tightly as she stared at me. I could hear the porcelain teapot rattle ever so slightly. She wasn't the only one who'd practically had a miniature heart attack though! When I heard her gasp I was sure I was gonna turn and see a blade catch me between the eyes. When I spun around to see nothing but a lady with a tray I'd been so relieved I accidentally blurted out the words "You scared me!"

Stupid stupid stupid.

Then again... maybe not since she hadn't turned around to run away screaming yet. I probably confused her. I'm good at doing stuff like that. That and blind people with my pure awesomeness of course! Hey maybe that was why she didn't scream! I blinked at her, giving her a once over. She swallowed dryly, her eyes still fixed on mine as she clutched her tray as if it was a weapon.

Then again maybe not.

She swallowed again before licking her lips nervously. "Are... are you new?"

"Huh?" I blinked dumbly at her.

She gave me an uncertain look. "It... It's just I haven't seen you around before so I was.. ..wondering.. .." He voice trailed off pathetically as she bit her lip. She looked terrified but seemed unsure of what to do.

I quickly put 2 and 2 together as I gave her what I hoped was a disarming grin. "Oh! Oh yeah sure! Yeah I got er... Transferred here this morning!" My mind raced as I tried to quickly come up with a good story. Even I had to admit I didn't sound very convincing.

She nodded thoughtfully, not taking her eyes off me. "You don't... _look_ like a guard."

I gave a sheepish laugh as I tried to buy some time, trying to think of what to say next. "Yeah well... Well I'm not a guard see. I'm a messenger!" I quickly added when I saw her tense up and take a step backwards. "Yeah! Yeah I'm a new messenger!"

Something clicked in the back of my head as I realised I was face to face with exactly the kind of person Leo said we were suppose to be looking for. She seemed skittish and by the looks of it probably hadn't been working here long. I think. She didn't seem sure whether I was some-one who worked here so obviously she doesn't know every-one around here yet. That was a good sign right? So yeah! Great! Maybe I could ask her some questions!

Damn! What do I ask her though? Do I just ask her what this Lord whatever's plans are just right out? Oh sure _that_ doesn't sound suspicious at all! But the what do I say? Where was Donny when I needed him?

I gave the empty doorway Donny had disappeared through a quick glance before I turned back to the girl. She was looking around herself awkwardly. She seemed unsure of whether she should leave or not. No no! I needed her to stay here!

"Sorry if I scared ya." I said. It was all I could think of. "This place kinda gives you the creeps doesn't it?"

She gave a laugh that sounded more nervous than anything. "Yes. Yes I suppose it does. But it's alright. I just didn't expect to see any-one around this part of the palace." She blinked as if a sudden thought struck her. "Why... why _are_ you around this part of the palace anyway?"

"Oh. Well," I said, rubbing the back of my head. "I was looking for er... Iwasaki-san! Yeah that's right!" The guy we spoke to earlier's name popped into my head like a firecracker. "Yeah! He met some guys a while back who were talking about some uhm fake messenger telling people Lord... Lord... the Lord here was hiring people and he asked me to like, find out what was going on and stuff! So I'm trying to find him." I finished proudly. I wish Leo could've seen me and my mad improvising skills! I had to remember to tell him later.

The girl blinked at me again for a moment before she gave her head a light shake. "But Iwasaki-san has left."

I frowned at this, honestly confused. "Whaddya mean? I just saw him two days ago!" I stuttered. "You... you know when he asked me to find some stuff out after he'd seen those other people I mentioned."

"Yes, but yesterday he and a small party left to meet up with Lord Nagahashi at Izumo." She said.

I blinked at her. "Wait. This Lord guy's not _here?"_

She shook her head again. "No. He left a good month ago. I thought every-one in the palace was aware of this."

I forced a small laugh at this, realising how close I was coming to blowing my cover. "Yeah well as I said I'm new and erm and I've mainly been talking to Iwakasi- I mean Iwasaki-san! So I guess I didn't hear about it."

She frowned at me and I felt the beads of sweat forming around my temples. "That seems a little suspicious to me."

"I'm not suspicious!" I said, trying my best to sound insulted. "I can't help if I don't know everything like you apparently do!"

She made a small, infuriated noise at this. "Well I cannot help it if you are ill-informed! Then again you do not seem like the brightest messenger I have ever seen so I suppose I should forgive you for being so ignorant!"

"What's that suppose to mean?" I said, this time insulted for real.

"Who else but an idiot searches for their superior when he is not here?" She said, frowning angrily at me. "And why are you standing in front of an open doorway in the middle of a hallway anyway?"

"I er..." I faltered, blinking to myself. "I.. I thought I heard a noise ok?"

"You didn't hear _me_ when I approached you." She said.

"Exactly! I was trying to hear what was going on in there!" I pointed at the doorway.

"And what _is_ going on in there?" She asked me, or rather yelled at me by this stage.

"Nothing!" I said. "Or else I _think_ nothing cuz you interrupted me!"

"I do not believe you!" She said suddenly, making my stomach lurch. "You are lurking around here saying you heard suspicious noises when _you_ are obviously the suspicious one! I do not think you heard anything! You are probably a thief pretending to be a messenger so as to steal from Lord Nagahashi!"

"I am not!" I yelled back, balling my fists. "I'm not a thief! I don't even know what'd be worth taking in a place like this! I just heard a noise so I checked it out!"

"You heard nothing because nothing is there!" She yelled accusingly.

The door suddenly slammed itself wide open cutting my argument with the stupid girl short as Donny shot into the hallway. He spun to face the girl, sliding into a low crouch as he held his bo in what I recognized as an offensive position.

The girl gave a small, sharp cry at this, her hands flying up to her mouth as she dropped her tray. The elegant teapot smashed to bits on the hard wooden floor. She then took a deep breath, spun herself around and stormed in the opposite direction, screaming.

"_Help help! Thief! Assassin! Help!" _She streaked around the corner and I heard her run down the hall in a blind panic, calling the guards as she went.

My hand shot out and I gave Donny a hard slap across his stupid head. "What the heck didya do that for?" I yelled at him. "Do you _always_ make a grand entrance when you come out of a room?"

Donny stood upright, rubbing his head where I'd smacked him and stared at me with large eyes. "I heard yelling! I thought you were in trouble."

"Yeah well we're gonna have some _serious_ trouble now!" I said as I could hear the sound of running footsteps coming our way. "Good job Donny!"

We both broke into a run down the hallway, away from the oncoming guards.

"I thought you were under attack!" Donny went on as we ran.

"Yeah yeah! I got it!" I yelled back, looking around frantically. "We gotta get outta this place! D'you remember where we came in?"

"I don't know!" He said, looking around as well. "Everything looks the same!"

"That's never stopped ya before!" I said.

"Yeah well sue me!" He snapped at me. "Just find a window!"

"It's like a 5 storey drop!" He yelled back.

"Do you wanna try fighting the entire armed guard instead?" He said angrily.

I took the point and looked around more urgently, trying to find somewhere we could get out of the building. Don't these people know about ventilation? There was just wall and lamp and floor everywhere. The hallway we were running down seemed to go on forever. I kept imagining it suddenly filling up with guards and swords and spears.

"I'm not seeing a way out Donny!" I called anxiously.

"Then we gotta look somewhere else!" He called back, taking a sudden turn to the right as if he was gonna throw himself against the wall.

I slid to a stop as I spun to see what the heck he was doing. He shot out a foot and at first I thought he'd actually kicked down a wall until I realised He'd kicked one of those hidden slidey doors that led to a room behind it. He ran through the now open doorway and disappeared around a corner where I heard more breaking wood. I stood blinking in the hallway until I heard and cry behind me and turned to see a bunch of really angry looking guys running towards me. I gave a yelp and ran after Donny, taking the corner and following him through the second smashed doorway.

"Hey, quick update!" I called when I caught up with him. "We got some really angry dudes who seem real anxious to talk to us!"

"Got it!" Donny nodded as we ran through a very large, fancy looking room. There was a thin looking woman in it who gave a girly scream when we ran past her and demolished another door to keep going.

"Sorry!" I called to her as we ran out.

We skidded around another corner and suddenly found ourselves in a really big room. It was wood all around like the hallways had been but it had 4 thin pillars around it and had a small stage-like area with a fancy looking screen on it with pictures of birds and mountains and stuff painted on it. Behind me I could hear the guards right on our heels. I looked around the room frantically and spotted something that looked like a trap-door against one of the walls.

"Donny hold up!" I said, skidding to a halt.

"Yeah yeah I got it I see it!" He said, doing a quick turn and making a straight line for the closed window.

"You got it?" I asked, turning my back to him as I freed my nun-chucks from my belt and got them into a spin as quickly as I could.

"Yeah no problem." He said quickly.

I heard a heavy shifting sound as he forced the large hatch open and I suddenly felt a flood of frozen air hit the back of my neck and head.

"Great." Donny grumbled.

"What's wrong?" I asked, turning to look over my shoulder at him. Once I did so though there was no point in him answering. The frozen air that was blowing hard into the room was bringing with it a flurry of white powder.

"Aw man." I whined, dropping my shoulders.

"Mikey!" Donny called out a warning and I spun to the front again to see 4 armed guards, swords at the ready, run into the room and slow into an offensive stance, walking carefully closer.

I changed the direction of my nun-chucks' spin as I widened my stance slightly. "Go!" I said to Donny. "I'll cover you."

"You gonna be ok?" I heard him say as he forced the window open wider, getting ready to jump.

"Yeah I'm great! Just go, you can't swing that stick of yours in this room anyway!" I said hurriedly.

There wasn't a reply and I took that as a sign he'd jumped out the window. Probably the first time a line like that meant something good and not suicidal. I just hope whatever landing was there wasn't gonna cause me to like break an ankle or something.

But I was gonna have to worry about that later. There were other problems right now. When Donny disappeared one of the guards lunged forward, probably trying to get me outta the way so he could stop Don's escape or something. Some-one obviously had no idea who they were dealing with! I twisted out of his lunge and brought my weapon down hard on the back of his head before finish the move with my knee to his gut. I pulled myself away from him as he slumped over, focusing on the next guy who tried to get in a cheap shot while I was occupied with the first guy.

I dodged his sword swing but he twisted it at the last minute and turned it into a chop that very nearly got me right across the face. I gave a small yelp at this and tried to back-step out of his range but felt my shell bump against the wall behind me. When the guard struck again with another chop I grabbed the end of one of my chucks and caught the blade with the chain, twisting it and ripping the sword outta the guy's hands. When he staggered forward off-balance I gave him a kick in the chest before chucking his blade aside, focusing on the last two guys.

I could hear more running footsteps. A lot more. I had to get out of here before things got too hairy.

I took a careful step to the side until I could feel the wind blowing against the side of my face from right next to me. I tensed myself, looking back and forth between the two remaining guards who, unlike their two friends who're lying groaning on the ground, seemed to be taking it a little slower as they tried to find and opening.

I clenched my teeth and gave a wide, aggressive swing at one of them. He was hopelessly outta my range but he took a hesitant step backwards anyway. I turned and gave the other one a few angry swings as well. I tried my best to give them a sneer a la Raph, trying to intimidate them. The other footsteps were almost on top of me by now. Time to go.

I caught my 'chucks out of their spin and stood upright, giving the two remaining guards a grin and a salute.

"Gotta go!" I said before grabbing the edge of the window and side-jumping out of it, hoping that there was a soft landing below me.

It was like jumping into a snow globe. Apparently while we were running around inside, a storm had decided it felt like stopping by. Or rather a blizzard. The splinter-thin snowflakes stung my face and eyes as I fell, the world around me a mess of white and grey and black. I couldn't even see the wall of the building wooshing past me.

It was with a heavy thud then that I hit something like a floor not too far under me. I hadn't been expecting it and fell badly, slipping as I very quickly realised whatever I was standing on had a sharp slope to it. I skidded slightly when I found the layer of snow had a layer of ice under it. I felt my foot suddenly hanging in mid air over nothing.

Realising I was on one of the Building's weird side-roofs I dug my hands down for anywhere they could find a grip, stopping myself from falling off it and to the ground which was who knows how far below me. I gave my head a hard shake, trying to get my bearings through the blizzard as to where the heck I was suppose to go. There was no sign of Donny anywhere.

I spotted the shadow of a straight line a little below and in front of me that seemed a little darker than the rest of the empty air around me. I decided, or rather hoped, it was the outside wall of the place and got to my feet. There was a whistle of air past one of my ears followed by a sharp thud. I turned to see a wooden rob about 2 feet long buried in the snow just a step to the side of where I was standing. It was soon followed by another one which bounced off the wall and got lost somewhere in the darkness.

I gave a sharp noise and made a literal blind dash for the shadow in front of me, trying my best not to kill myself on the frozen roof. I heard a few more arrows trying to bury themselves in me as I went. There was no hope of any-one hitting me in the dark with this weather though. Or at least that's what I was gonna assume.

I reached the end of my runway and gave a mad jump for whatever the dark shape in front of me was. I fell against it hard and slid a little down it before I managed to find a hand-hold and scrambled onto it properly. A quick look told me it really was the outer wall of the palace. I gave a small, disbelieving laugh. It was cut short when I heard another arrow hit something way too close for comfort. I snapped my head downwards and saw the wall had a walk-way no more than 4 or 5 feet below me. I could see the vague outline of a person standing on it a few paces to my left. Snow or not, there was no way he was gonna miss me if I stuck around here.

I tried to look down over the side of the wall to the ground but it was lost in the swirling snowflakes.

I gulped down a deep breath, gave the guy standing to my left another quick glance before I tensed myself and made the jump, hoping there was a soft landing below me.

For a few moments as I fell I had an image in my head of hitting the stone ground below me and having my carapace crack open like a thrown egg against the hard surface. The image was lost when I felt myself slam into something soft which wrapped around me. I saw stars explode in front of my eyes as I struggled to figure out which way was up.

"Michelangelo!" A familiar voice cried out. "Mikey are you ok?"

Hands clamped themselves around one of my arms and pulled me out of what I realised was a snowdrift. I shook the stuff from my face and head before looking around at the wall behind me. I couldn't see the top of it.

"Mikey are you _ok?"_ Donny urged, giving my arm a slight shake.

I gave a nod, turning to look at him. "Yeah!" I yelled over the wind. "Never better!"

"C'mon, we gotta go." Donny said, tugging me to my feet.

"Don't need to tell me twice." I said, stumbling after him as we ran away from the palace, twisting and turning between the smaller buildings of the town and disappearing into the night.

**Xxxxx**

_._


	27. Escape and Reunion

_I haven't finished the chapter after this one yet but I decided to be naughty and upload this Anyway :D_

_I know absolutely nothing about Early Edo period architecture, so please forgive my lack of knowledge on that subject._

_I don't own TMNT or UY._

**Xxxxx**

The seconds ticked by.

They soon became minutes and so far we hadn't heard any other screams.

But it wasn't quiet. Far from it. Every few moments we could hear some-one running past the room or some-one yelling orders to some-one else or calling to hear what was going on. Every time I heard a voice I strained my ears to try and make out what was being said.

'They're running towards the east wing.' 'They're on the roof.' 'Get more archers out there.'

I listened, trying to piece together everything I was hearing into some sort of idea of what was going on outside in the hallways.

Raph was standing next to me, staring at the sliding door in front of us. The only sound he'd made was when the first guard ran past our room, yelling about intruders trying to escape the palace. Raph had gritted his teeth and I'd heard him say 'Don and Mikey' in a hoarse whisper to himself. I hadn't replied and he hadn't said anything else after that.

Usagi was standing on the other side of me. He was also staring at the door but unlike me and Raph didn't appear to really be looking at it. His ears twitched slightly every few moments as he listened. I wondered if he was trying to pick up any sounds of trouble coming our way or if he was also trying to hear what the guards were yelling. He hadn't said anything at all.

Eventually less and less people ran past our room and no-one was calling to each other any more. Every few moments we'd hear voices from somewhere deeper in the building but even that grew quiet after a while. Soon it was silent and it once again felt as if the three of us were completely alone in the building.

I gave a shaky breath, breaking whatever spell had been over us. I ran a hand over my head as I turned to Raph and Usagi. "Sounds like they're calming down."

Raph pulled a face and gave a tight nod but he said nothing. Usagi sheathed his sword and ran both his hands over his face.

"We need to get out of here." He said, lowering his hands and turning to me and Raph. "The palace sounds like a kicked anthill. We can not stay here. We will be discovered for sure if we do."

I gave a grim nod, but I was only half listening as I tried to form a plan. The last thing I wanted to do, the very last thing I wanted to do, was leave if either Donny or Mikey or both had gotten in trouble. It was pretty clear from the shouts and running footsteps that they'd been found out, unless some-one else had decided to sneak into the palace the exact same night we did. The fact that things had quietened down meant the two of them weren't running around the building any more which means they either got away or they'd been caught. The problem was did we wanna risk leaving, hoping they'd gotten away or should we make sure they hadn't been caught by the guards first?

"Leonardo?"

I gave my head a slight shake as if to wake myself up before turning to look at Usagi. He was staring at me, not sure whether I'd heard him or not.

"We need to leave." He repeated.

I made a thoughtful noise, turning to look at Raph. He stared back at me but didn't give any clues as to what he was thinking. I bit my lip, turning back to Usagi.

"Mikey and Don..." Was as all I got out.

Usagi pulled a slight face at this, breaking eye contact as he thought to himself for a few moments. He then exhaled, turning to look me in the eyes again.

"They have clearly been found." He said.

"Well yeah, we got that." Raph finally said, taking a few steps closer to him. "But what do we do? Just leave 'em here? No way man. I ain't runnin' out on any of my bros. I'm not doin' it." He crossed his arms as if to make his point.

"So you think they've been caught?" I said, frowning slightly although it was more in concern than anything else.

"I dunno." He said, shaking his head. "But I don't really wanna take the chance either."

"It sounds as if you do not have much faith in your younger brothers." Usagi said, rubbing his eyes with a forefinger and thumb. Wrong thing to say at the wrong moment.

Raph gave a small growl and took a couple of dangerous steps towards him. "Hey! Don't go twistin' my words Bunny-boy! If this was some-one from _your_ family I'm sure you'd be worried if they'd been caught and thrown in some pit too! Faith ain't got nothin' ta do with it!"

"Raph, for God's sake keep your voice down!" I hissed at him, giving the door a quick glance.

Raph was still glaring at Usagi but said nothing more, although I could see him squaring his shoulders.

Usagi seemed completely unmoved but Raph's anger and gave a sigh. "Alright. I am sorry." His faced turned serious again. "But I repeat; we can not stay here. If your brothers were indeed caught we will not be helping them in any way by getting found and captured ourselves." He then turned to me. "The plan was to regroup at the inn was it not?"

I gave a nod. "Yeah, but I'd meant after we'd found some-one and spoken to them. Even if we learned nothing useful our cover would be blown and we'd need to leave."

"Have you ever considered that maybe that is what's happening?" He cocked an eyebrow at me.

My frown flickered. The truth was I hadn't. I felt a knot of frustration at realising this. Maybe Usagi was right and we weren't giving Don and Mikey enough credit.

"Mmrph." Raph grunted, sounding as unsure as I felt. "Guess you got a point."

"The plan was to meet at the inn. I feel that is what we need to do." Usagi finished.

I sighed and gave a nod, sheathing my swords. "Alright. You're right of course." I stood straight, focusing back on what needed to be done and pushing my personal worries aside again.

"The hallway outside sounds pretty quiet at the moment, but the way we'd come didn't really have any cover. I don't think it'd be a good idea trying to sneak out the same way. Besides the guards are still gonna be on edge after all that noise." I said.

"So what do we do?" Raph asked. "We jump from room ta room or somethin'?"

I shook my head. "No. Too risky. We might run into another maid or something."

Usagi nodded. "They will most likely start searching for any accomplices Donatello-san and Mikey-kun might have who are still in the palace." He pointed himself. "Case and point."

"Ok, so we can't go back the way we came an' we can't go from room ta room, so whadda we do?" Raph said irritably.

After thinking it over for a moment I turned my gaze upwards to the ceiling. It seemed to be made up of wooden slabs, carefully fitted against each other but not hammered down or sealed in place. "We should try get up into the roof." I said, voicing my thoughts.

"Is there a roof ta get up to?" Raph said, turning to look up at the ceiling as well. "Ain't it just the next floor above us?"

"There should be a gap between the floor above us and the ceiling." Usagi said. "If the other palaces I have been in are any indication there should be enough room for a man to move through provided we watch our footing."

"Right." I said, making up my mind. "Raph, give me a boost."

Raph gave me a lift and with a little bit of effort I got one of the wooden slabs above us loose, moving it upwards and out of the way. Raph felt a little unstable under me but I managed to get a good grip on a wooden beam without us falling over and hoisted myself upwards. I made sure not to put any weight on the remaining wooden slabs who were now a little unbalanced with the missing piece locking them all in place. Once I'd found a place I could crouch properly I turned around to look back down through the hole at Raph and Usagi.

"How's it look Leo?" Raph asked, taking a few steps back so he could look up at me properly.

I lifted my head again and gave the surrounding area a once over. It was not an easy task. If the hallways had been dark and gloomy then you could image what it looked like in that ceiling with absolutely no lamps. I had to rely on my other senses to give me a better idea on what was up here.

Apart from the wooden slabs the rest of the place seemed capable of holding our weight, provided we made sure to stick close to the support beams. There were no real walls separating rooms from corridors up here but I could see a large support beam not too far from where I sat crouched. I was sure there had to be a few walls that might block our path to keep the building from collapsing in on itself. However there was a chill in the air and the space felt open. I could faintly make out the wooden floor above us. It was so hardened with age that no light from above could escape into this gloom. I wasn't sure how we were suppose to find a way out in this place but at least it would get us away from any guards. If it was needed we could drop down again to find our bearings.

I turned back to Raph and Usagi. "It's dark, but we'll probably be safer up here than anywhere else."

"Right." Raph said, cupping his hands together before turning to Usagi. "Alright Long-Ears you're next."

Usagi nodded, stepping into Raph's hands as my brother gave him a boost to join me. I grabbed my friend's arm to help hoist him up. Once he was next to me we both helped pull up Raph. We then replaced the wooden slab, cutting off the only light source we'd had, leaving us in complete darkness.

"Alright guys," I said to the invisible Raph and Usagi. "We're gonna have to watch where we step. I don't want any-one crashing through these slabs on top of a guard or something. If we follow roughly the way we came we should be able to find the outside wall. We'll drop onto the floor below us and get out through a window."

"How exactly do we watch where we are going when we can not see our hands in front of our faces?" I heard Usagi's voice ask.

"Don't worry." Raph's voice said. "Leo an' me do this kinda stuff all the time. We don't need light ta see what we're doin'. Not if we're just goin' from one place to another."

"Well I am very glad for you, but I however need to be able to see in order to know where I am going." Usagi's voice said irritably.

"Alright alright." I cut him short. I'd forgotten Usagi was not a ninja and probably didn't do much sneaking around in pitch darkness. "Raph, you're still wearing your mask right?"

"Duh." Raph's voice said flatly.

"Untie it and have Usagi hold the other end. Usagi, you follow Raph and try to keep in step with him as best as you can." I said.

A few moments went by before I heard Usagi's voice say. "Alright, we're set."

"Good. Raph make sure you cut a path that's easy to follow." I said, turning to what I guess I could call 'the front' as I started to try and map out how we'd first come. "And keep your voices down. Just because they can't see us doesn't mean they can't hear us."

"Got it." Raph said as I heard him follow not too far behind me.

Although the layout of the ceiling was strange and the fact that we couldn't stand up was irritating it wasn't that hard moving through the darkness. Raph and I had had to do much worse without being able to see. We'd had to fight battles with multiple opponents without being able to see a thing and had not only managed not to get killed, but we'd also managed not to accidentally stab each other in the process. Usagi being along meant we had to take things a little easier but luckily he was smart and with the help of Raph managed to keep up with us and not fall through any wooden slabs. There was a moment when I heard a commotion from Raph before he spat but it turned out he'd just crawled into a spiderweb. Something he was horrified about but which I didn't exactly see as a problem. We kept our talking to a minimum, not wanting to call attention to ourselves.

After a short while and only a few turns we could hear voices talking underneath us. I whispered at Raph and Usagi to hold up as I realised we might be able to figure out what's going on. Perhaps hanging around wasn't the best idea but despite what Usagi had said I was still worried about Don and Mikey. I hated not knowing what was going on.

"What's up?" Raph's voice whispered as I pressed myself closer to the wooden slabs.

"Ssht!" I hissed at him. "I'm trying to hear."

Raph said nothing. I heard some-one moving closer. I didn't need to focus too hard to realise it was Usagi crawling over and putting his head against the ceiling too.

It was pitch black but I closed my eyes anyway, trying to concentrate on the conversation below me.

"Have they found anything?" A man's voice was saying. He sounded angry. I took this as a good sign.

"No Sir." a younger man's voice said. "We've searched the Eastern wall on either side but we haven't found either of the intruders."

I let go of a long breath at this, but listened further.

"Are you sure they went over?" The first man barked.

"Yes Sir. Positive." The second said.

"Because with this accursed blizzard I'd be surprised if you hadn't just seen a stray tokage jump from the outer wall!" The first went on.

"No sir! It was most definitely the two intruders! The first jumped down to the guard-walk and took out one of the archers before bolting over the wall. The second came a few moments after him. He'd jumped the wall close to another archer's station who got a good look at him before he went." The first said quickly.

"If he was so close to one of your archers why did he manage to escape unscathed?" The first voice demanded.

"We're not sure sir." The first said, sounding frustrated. "Nobutada, that is the archer who saw him, swears he managed to hit him with one of his arrows before he went over the wall sir. He said he wasn't sure whether the intruder had jumped or fallen due to the injury. We searched the area and found the place he'd landed but there were no traces of any blood and the blizzard made it impossible to try and follow any tracks sir."

I felt my heart climb uncomfortably into my throat. I tried to swallow it down again.

"So your archer could easily be lying about hitting this intruder?" The first voice grumbled.

"I don't believe he is sir. Nobutada is of an honorable character and I believe what he says. If nothing else he was merely mistaken due to the weather and lack of visibility." The second said. He sounded sure of himself.

"I don't care how trustworthy your man is! Have some-one question that maid! I want to know what they were after! And search the surrounding area!" The first said

"But... Sir the blizzard outside..."

"Well then search the palace grounds and the wall perimeter _again_! I want them found!" The first voice said angrily.

"Let's go." I said, having heard enough.

Raph crawled closer and he and Usagi followed me as we quickly moved away from the room with the angry sounding man.

"I couldn't hear everythin'" Raph whispered urgently after a few minutes. "What'd he say?"

"Donny and Mikey are out of the building." I said, not slowing down. "Also, there's apparently a storm outside. They haven't found their trail so I think they're both in the clear."

"Well that's a relief." Raph said. "But I heard somethin' about archers. What was that about?"

"One of them saw either Mikey-kun or Donatello-san go over the wall after firing at him." Usagi said before I could stop him.

"Woah. 'Firin' at him'? They were shootin' arrows at our bros out there?" Raph said, louder than he should.

"Shh! Raph!" I hushed him urgently.

"What did the guy _say_ Leo!" Raph pressed, not lowering his voice.

"He said he thinks he might've hit one of them but they didn't find any blood so he's not sure!" I hissed quickly. "Now keep your voice down!"

Raph fell silent but I could feel him fuming behind me.

"They didn't find any blood Raph." I said again, a little calmer. "And there's a blizzard outside. He probably missed."

"If it's snowin' blood can be covered up." Raph growled darkly, making my stomach turn slightly.

"Neither of your brothers have been found." Usagi's voice said calmly. "Even if one of them has been hit they are clearly not wounded badly if they could make a fast escape."

"Yeah but one of 'em could still _be hit!_" Raph argued.

"If they could get away, it could not be a serious injury." Usagi said, his voice a little colder than before. "an Arrow wound can either be fatal or it can be nothing but a slight inconvenience that merely hurts a lot."

"Oh yeah?" Raph snorted, sounding angry.

"Yes." Usagi said with conviction. "I am speaking from experience."

Raph merely gave a grumble at this.

"In any case, they got away from this place and are probably together. All we gotta focus on is getting back to the inn and meet up with them." I said, trying to act as the voice of reason. "Which means we don't have to worry about leaving them behind any more."

"Good." Usagi said. Raph said nothing.

We moved in silence for the rest of the way. A short while later we hit a wall that was sturdier than those we'd had to move around. There didn't seem to be any way past it and we agreed that this must be the outer wall of the palace. Raph helped me move the wooden slab closest to us out of the way as quietly as we could and peered down into the room below us. It was empty. I dropped down first, making sure the coast was clear before helping Usagi and Raph down.

The room looked like it was some or other throne room or something where meetings were held. It was unlit but it was still lighter than the ceiling we'd just come from. It smelled musty and despite being clean it felt like no-one had used it in a long time. Against the wall on one side were several large wooden latches. The windows had been closed against the cold. Raph helped me unbolt and open one of them.

As soon as we'd lifted the wooden door a gust of freezing air blew into the room, filling it with swirling snow. I shuddered, wishing I had my kimono with me. I pushed the thought aside for the moment and stuck my head out, trying to get an idea of how high we were, if there was any kind of surface we could drop down to and how far the outer wall was. The wind was blowing pretty hard though and the snow made me feel like I was trying to make out shapes through static. I pulled a worried face to myself, turning all my attention to whatever was below us. I thought I could make out one of the lower roofs but I wasn't sure. Rope! We should've brought rope!

I pulled my head back in and turned back to Usagi and Raph who was retying his mask back onto his face. "I think there's a roof below us but I'm not sure." I said.

"'Yer not sure'? Oh well that's very comfortin'" Raph said, walking closer to stick his own head out of the window. "Whaddya suggest we do? Take a leap of faith?"

"And get ourselves killed? Probably not the best idea. If it wasn't for the damn snow I'd be able to see something else but this stupid blizzard...!" I grumbled. I felt frustrated that we'd managed to avoid getting caught only to get stuck here.

"We can not wait for it to subside." Usagi piped up.

"Yeah yeah." Raph silenced him before he could go on,coming back inside. "So what do we do?"

I gave a hum as I thought. "The man in the room we passed said that Donny and Mikey had jumped to the outer wall. We know they were on the same floor as us. So logic says there's probably a roof a little below us." I said carefully.

"And ya think it'd circle the entire buildin'?" Raph asked, giving me a skeptical look. "What if there's a gap in it or somethin' right under us and we fall to our deaths?"

I made a small noise, turning to give Usagi a glance. He stared back at me, waiting to hear what I decided. I turned back to Raph, giving an unsure shrug. "We can't stay here." I said.

Raph groaned, running a hand over his face. "You're gonna get us killed Leo."

I frowned, irritated by this but I decided to ignore it for now. I took a step towards the window. "I'll go first. Watch me and see if you can tell whether I'd found a ledge or not. I'll wait for you before I move on. If we run into any archers I'll draw their fire while you and Usagi get away."

"And if we can't see you?" Raph asked pointedly.

I paused at the window, my hands gripping its frame. "Then you have to decide what you want to do." I said, slinging my leg over the side of the window as I turned to look at them.

Raph was frowning hard at me, his arms crossed over his chest. Usagi stood behind him, watching me with obvious concern but saying nothing. I gave them what I hoped was a reassuring look before I slung myself out the window, gripping bottom of the frame as I hung myself over the side. I tried to get a last look below me, hoping I would catch a glimpse of some or other roof. Snow was swirling around me angrily and it was impossible to tell how long it'd be before dawn. I dunno why I thought I'd be able to see something now when I couldn't the first time I tried, but it was worth a shot. I swallowed at whatever was caught in my throat, readied myself, and dropped.

There was a instant where I felt fear almost get the better of me, but I choked it down again. Before I even managed to calm myself down properly I felt a shock run up my legs as I landed on something solid and covered in snow. I dropped to my hands and knees as I quickly anchored myself, making sure I wasn't going to lose my footing and slip. Once I was sure I was set I turned to look back up at the window I'd dropped from.

There hadn't been any lamps in the room I'd come from so I didn't have any light source to go by. I thought I could see a dark spot against the wall somewhere above me but I wasn't sure if I was just seeing things or if it was the window. Nevertheless, I turned to face it better and gave a large wave with my arm, hoping Raph would see me.

I knew there was a chance one of the archers would see me too, but it probably wasn't likely. The wind was still blowing strong and it was hard to see even a few feet in any direction. Not to mention the snow got caught in my eyes as the wind stung them. My hands were already going numb and I gave a bad shudder, rubbing my arms as I waited to see if Raph was going to follow me. I didn't bother calling to him. Even if he heard me I didn't want to catch the attention of any-one else. I hoped he was gonna follow me, I couldn't stay out here waiting for very long.

I waited for what felt like ages although it was probably more like 5 minutes before I saw a dark shape coming down from above. A few seconds later Raph landed next to me, slipping slightly but quickly getting his balance. He moved a little closer to me, giving the window a quick look as he turned back to me. He seemed to be panting slightly but it seemed to be the adrenaline more than anything else.

"You ok?" He asked over the wind.

I gave him a smile and a nod although I could feel my teeth chatter. "Freezing but fine."

"No kiddin'." Raph said, shivering as he turned to look around. "Any archers?"

"I haven't seen any-one. Although that doesn't really say much." I said, pulling a face. "Usagi coming?"

"Yeah." Raph nodded. "Yeah I told 'im to give me a few seconds ta get outta the way then he's comin' down."

"I'm glad you could see me." I said, curling myself a little tighter, trying to preserve whatever heat I had left. "I was worried you wouldn't."

"We couldn't." Raph said, turning to look back up at the window.

I blinked, then frowned. "But then why did you...?"

He gave a shrug, not looking at me. "Felt like the right thing ta do."

I frowned to myself at this but didn't press him further. I turned to look up at the window as well, wondering if Usagi was as reckless as Raph was, already knowing the answer. It wasn't much longer before we saw his shadow dropping down to join us.

He landed in roughly the same spot Raph had although with far less grace. He'd tried to land in a way which was fine for jumping over fences or down from low roofs but not when you were trying to make a safe landing from a drop like that onto a frozen surface. Almost as soon as he landed his leg slid out from under him and he lost his balance.

"Shit!" Raph cried, throwing his arms out and grabbing our friend around the chest, heaving him back onto the roof. I moved forward to try and help but Raph was closer.

I could see Usagi's hands gripping Raph's shell as he tried to get himself away from the edge. He scrambled closer to the wall, turning to give the edge of the roof an almost panicked look. Raph was gripping his shoulder, making sure he'd steadied himself.

"Are you ok Usagi?" I asked anxiously.

"Yes." he said, swallowing before turning to nod at me. "Yes I am alright. Just shaken."

"You nearly gave me a heart attack." I said, blowing out a relieved breath.

"You ain't use ta doin' jumps are ya?" Raph said, giving him a hard pat on the back, causing Usagi to try and bury his hands deeper in the snow to keep him steady.

"You gonna be ok for the next jump?" I asked, suddenly realising we might have a bigger problem on our hands. "We're gonna have to get to the outer wall from here and then to the ground. Are you gonna be ok to do that?"

Usagi seemed to pull himself together at this slightly, nodding and moving away from the wall, dusting the snow off his hands. "I will be fine. I just under-estimated the drop. It will not happen again."

I made a noise at this. "Well ok. If you're sure."

"I am sure." He said, turning to look at me properly. "So what now?"

I nodded, turning to look around again. "We need to find the outer-wall from here."

"Easier said than done." Raph grumbled, wrapping his arms around himself.

"If there are archers stationed on the walkway, and we know there are, there should be lantern bearers along it as well." Usagi said, scanning the area a little below us. "If we can make out a light of some kind it's safe to assume it will be from the walkway."

"Sounds like a plan." I nodded, shifting to get up. "Raph, you go around that way, me and Usagi will go the other. If you think you've spotted the wall stop and wait for us to catch up with you. We'll do the same. Once we find it we'll make our next move."

Raph nodded and turned, making his way carefully along the roof, keeping an eye open for any lantern lights. I watched him go for a few moments before I helped Usagi to his feet and we went the opposite way, doing the same. Usagi ended up being the one to spot a lantern light after we made our way around a corner of the building. We waited until Raph joined us from the other side. Once we were all together Usagi pointed out where he'd seen the light. I couldn't see anything myself but then I wasn't really sure what a lantern light would look like in this weather.

"There will probably be a guard stationed there." Usagi said, wrapping his kimono a little tighter around himself.

"Then we'll just hafta take care of 'im." Raph said, tensing himself for the jump. "We goin'?"

I nodded. "You go first." I said. "Take out any-one who could be waiting for us."

"Count on it." Raph said, taking a few steps backwards before running along the length of the roof we were on and making the jump, disappearing into the snow.

I waited, silently counting to 10 before turning to Usagi and taking him by the wrist, gripping it tightly. "Keep up, and jump when I do."

He looked a little wide-eyed but nodded, tensing himself for the run. I lowered myself slightly before following the way Raph had gone, not letting go of Usagi as I went. When I felt my foot reach the very edge of the roof I leapt, my free arm outstretched to grab whatever was waiting for me. I felt more than saw the wall as I slammed into it, immediately grabbing hold of one of the roof tiles and dragging myself up. I felt Usagi trying to get up onto the roof beside me. I kept a firm grip on him as I managed get both feet onto the wall before I turned and pulled him up.

"Still with me?" I asked him once I got him standing.

When he nodded I let go of him, looking around for any archers that might have caught sight of us.

"Yo." Raph's voice said as he suddenly appeared, climbing up from the walkway.

"Are we clear?" I asked, crouching down to make sure he wasn't being followed.

"I have no idea." He grunted, going to stand next to Usagi. "I dunno what light ya saw Long-Ears but there don't seem ta be any archers or lantern wavers or whatever around here."

Usagi frowned at this. "But I could've sworn I saw something."

"Let's not question it, let's just get out of here before we're spotted." I said, getting up and moving to the other side of the wall.

The drop down was a long one, but the fall was broken by the deep snow that'd formed thanks to the heavy snowfall we'd been having. It was probably the first time since we'd been here I saw the bad weather as being a positive thing and not a problem. I dropped down first, followed by Usagi and finally Raph who'd hung back to make sure we hadn't been seen. Once we were all down we made it our first priority to get away from the palace wall and in between the nearest buildings. Once we were sure we were out of sight, we got our bearings before making our way back towards the inn.

I found my second reason for not hating the snow as we did. The blizzard meant there was no-one on the streets and every window we passed was shut tight against the wind. No-one saw us jump down from the palace wall and no-one saw us make our escape.

It took a little longer than normal to get back to the inn, especially when we found ourselves twice having to make a U-turn when we realised we were going the wrong way but we eventually reached it. Like every other building, its windows and doors had been shut tight but with a little bit of strain Raph managed to force open the front door without breaking it. I slipped inside, desperate for some warmth as Usagi followed close behind. I then helped Raph shut the door again behind us, leaving no trace that we'd been out apart from a growing puddle on the floor as the snow melted off of us.

Raph gave himself something between a shake and a shudder as he moved to head up the stairs to our room. "That wasn't exactly how I like ta spend an evenin'"

"You and me both." I said, hugging myself tightly as I followed him. "But we made it back. That's what counts."

"Yeah." Raph said, suddenly sounding overly serious. "Speakin' of which."

He quickened his step, taking the stairs two at a time as he hurried to our room. I suddenly remembered the reason we'd made our sudden escape and moved to follow him. I stopped short when I realised Usagi was lagging behind. I was anxious to see if Don and Mikey were back yet and if they'd made it out ok but my friend's behaviour tonight was bothering me.

He was busy removing his sandals, leaving them neatly on the sanded patch of the inn's entrance before following me. He blinked at me when he realised I was waiting for him.

"You doing alright?" I asked, moving to walk up the stairs again when he caught up with me.

"I am a little more resilient to the cold than you are." He said, giving me a slight smile. "Although I do not enjoy it by any measure."

"Yeah I guess." I said, giving him a smile through my chattering teeth. "But that's not what I meant. You've been acting kind of..." I hesitated, trying to find the right word. "erm... Moody tonight."

He frowned lightly as we made our way to the second floor. "I do not follow."

"It's just you seemed a little irritable. For you at least." I gave a shrug. "Is something going on?"

He relaxed out of his frown at this, turning to the front again. "No not really. I was not aware that I have been acting aggressively though. I apologise."

"Hey no problem." I dismissed the apology. "But you're sure nothing's going on?"

He nodded as we reached our room. Raph had closed the door behind him. "I would tell you if there was." Usagi said.

I nodded although I didn't feel completely satisfied with his answer. I turned to focus on our door inside, hoping I would have all three my brothers waiting behind it.

I slid it open and we hurriedly stepped inside, closing it behind us again. I felt a weight drop off my shoulders when I was greeted by a wide Mikey-grin from where he was sitting, huddled under a blanket with Donny not too far away.

"Beat ya!" Mikey beamed at us when we came in.

"Yeah but by the sounds of it we get more points for stealth." I laughed in relief, instantly feeling better at seeing both him and Donny safe and sound.

"And not bein' meatheads." Raph grumbled, sounding irritable. I noticed he'd grabbed his own blanket and quickly wrapped it around himself too. He was busy twisting his mask in his hands to get rid of the water it'd gathered.

"I am glad to see you are both safe." Usagi said, walking over to his futon and giving Donny a warm smile as he passed him.

"Yeah no kidding." I said, moving to get my own blanket, undoing one of my elbow-pads as I went. I was anxious to get out of my wet gear and under something warm. "We were worried you'd been caught."

"What us? No way!" Mikey said, trying to look offended but unable to break his smile. He was obviously pleased about something. "You should have a little more faith in us Leo. We're not completely useless you know!"

"I'd argue with ya about that if I wasn't so cold." Raph grumbled.

Mikey waved him off. "We got back here safely didn't we?"

"Yes but barely." Donny piped up, cocking a brow at Mikey before turning to me. "They tried to take a shot at Mikey before he got out of there."

"Yeah I heard." I said, turning a little more serious as I sat down on my futon and covered myself up. "Are you ok? We heard an archer say he thought you'd been hit."

"He was." Donny said, freeing himself of his blanket before walking over to where he'd placed his bo.

"What?" Raph snapped, turning to stare wide-eyed at Don, then Mikey.

"Hey, easy Raph. I'm fine." Mikey said, holding up his hands as his grin softened into a more honest smile. "I didn't even notice it until Donny saw it once we got back here."

Don came back, carrying a long arrow on his hands and handing it to me. "The thing lodged itself in Mikey's shell. No damage done though. As he said we didn't even notice it until we got back."

"It hurt to take out though!" Mikey whined. "Why'd they have archers outside in this weather anyway? Some-one should complain to whoever's in charge! That sounds like a case for the union to me!"

I inspected the arrow before looking up to him again, smiling to myself. "I don't think they have unions here Mikey, but I'm glad you're ok. We were pretty worried for a while." I turned my head to look over my shoulder, raising my voice slightly. "Weren't we Raph?"

"Shut up." Raph grumbled darkly, lying himself down on his front and crossing his arms, sulking.

"Did you guys have any trouble?" Don asked as he wrapped his blanket around himself again.

"No not really. We had to be pretty creative when it came to getting out but we weren't seen, so I guess you could call that a success. Although I probably caught hypothermia in the process." I said, putting the arrow down and pulling the blanket tighter around myself. I was still freezing but it was helping. "You guys were obviously seen though. Did you get any info or anything? We had to get out of there pretty quick when the alarm was raised so we didn't manage to even ask any-one anything."

Mikey's smile perked up again as he beamed at me proudly. "Yeah we did! Or I did to be exact!"

I could see Donny roll his eyes at this behind Mikey's back, but I tried not to laugh at him. I gave Mikey an impressed smile instead.

"Judging by that look I'm guessing it was more than just a call for the guards." I said.

Mikey nodded eagerly. "Yeah! I ran into this maid person thing, or she ran into me rather, and I got a bunch of juicy things out of her!"

"I've been trying to get him to tell me what she said but he insisted that we regrouped before he said anything." Donny said, resting his face in a hand and looking at Mikey with an unimpressed stare. My guess was he was disappointed that Mikey was the one who'd gotten some information and not him.

"Well duh!" Mikey said, giving him a dirty look. "I don't wanna tell you everything and then have you give Leo the cliff-notes! That spoils the story man! You gotta give him the first-hand, full account!"

"So go ahead then." Donny said, pulling a face as if Mikey couldn't see it and waving his hand encouragingly. "Give us the first hand account. It better be worth the wait that's all I have to say."

"You bet it is!" Mikey said enthusiastically, turning back to the rest of us. "There's just one thing she said I didn't really understand. She was talking about a place or something and I didn't recognise the name of it, but I'm sure Usagi can fill in the gaps of that part or something!"

"I don' think he can." Raph said.

"What d'you mean?" Mikey said with a frown, obviously not too happy about Raph raining on his parade.

Raph nodded in Usagi's direction.

I turned to Usagi's futon to see what Raph was talking about. It turned out to be pretty obvious. Usagi had copied the rest of us and wrapped his blanket tightly around himself to try and warm up, but he'd also curled himself ontop of his futon and had, by the looks of it, fallen asleep almost immediately. I sighed at this although truth be told I wasn't really surprised.

"Is he ok?" Don said with a frown, pulling himself free from his blanket as he moved to get up. "How long were you guys out in the cold?"

"Relax Don." I said, turning to look at him. "He's fine."

"You sure?" Donny said, the corners of his mouth pulling as he gave Usagi a concerned look.

I nodded. "I'm sure. He barely slept last night, he's probably just exhausted."

"That would explain the attitude problem." Raph said, shifting to change how he was lying.

"Maybe you should get some sleep then too Raph." Mikey grinned. "Maybe it'd help _your_ attitude problem! Although you'd have to like, sleep for a hundred years or something to do it properly."

"Watch it Mikey." Raph growled. "Just cause ya escaped them archers don't mean I won't still kick your ass."

"Nobody's kicking any-one's ass." I said, moving to unwrap my blanket around myself so I could throw it across the futon instead. "But I think maybe sleep's not such a bad idea. I'm worn out. Besides," I turned to Mikey. "You said you needed Usagi to fill in some of the gaps in your story right?"

Mikey nodded at me.

I gave a shrug. "We'll have to wait till he wakes up then anyway right?"

"Yeah I guess." Mikey said reluctantly.

I gave him a nod. "Tell us over breakfast tomorrow, right now let's get some rest and try to warm up."

"Works for me." Raph said, rolling over so that his shell was towards the rest of us.

I rolled my eyes at him but moved to bunk down for the night myself.

"Should one of us keep watch or something?" Donny asked, turning to look at me. "I mean, in case some-one followed us."

I thought this over for a few moments, looking at the rest of group. Every-one looked tired out by the night and eager to get some rest, even Mikey despite his eagerness to tell me what he'd found out. Outside I could still hear the storm blowing. It didn't sound like it was gonna die any time soon. I shook my head.

"I think we'll be ok Don. No-one saw Raph, Usagi and I leave and I heard them say in the palace they couldn't find your trail. Any trace of us will be gone by morning. We should be alright." I said.

Donny gave a thoughtful nod at this, thinking it over to himself before he nodded more readily and lay down. I did the same, covering myself properly with the blanket.

I hadn't been lying, I was completely wiped out, probably more because of the cold than anything else. I wouldn't have minded to hear Mikey's story but I was grateful that we could get some sleep first. Usagi had provided me with an excuse to get some. It'd be better if I heard Mikey's story with a fresher mind anyway.

I watched as the rest of my brothers huddled down on their individual futons before Mikey blew out the lone lantern in our room and it was dark again. I could hear the wind howling outside. It didn't sound so bad when you heard it from the other side of a wall. I was a little nervous that when the weather cleared the palace guards would come beating down our door, ready to drag us off to some dungeon, but I took this as another reason why we should try and get some rest while we could. I especially wanted Usagi to get a few hours of sleep. I was starting to become concerned. He'd been acting snappy and slightly out of it tonight and I was starting to think maybe the lack of sleep was affecting him more than he realised.

I exhaled, closing my eyes as I decided to try and focus on these things once I woke up. Right now we were safe again and I was too tired to try and fix things right now. Besides I was finally feeling myself warm up again under the thick blanket. That alarm bell in my head that meant I needed to get myself somewhere warmer was calming down and I allowed myself to feel a little less frantic.

"Hey Leo?" Mikey's voice said from somewhere in the room.

"Mmm?" I said, feeling myself woken up again slightly.

There was a small pause before Mikey spoke again. "I'm glad you guys are ok. ... We were worried."

"Mmm." I said, smiling slightly as I settled down again.

**Xxxxx**

_Please R&R :)_


	28. A Place Called Izumo

_I don't own TMNT or UY_

**xxxxx**

"You haven't been listening." He said.

I frowned at this. I wasn't really sure what he meant. "What have I not been listening to?"

He merely stared at me with unblinking eyes. I shifted uncomfortably. Although I could feel the fondness I had for him, I somehow felt afraid and wasn't enjoying being in his presence.

"You are moving too slowly." He said critically. "And as time goes by you seem to be moving slower and slower. You are not listening when you're spoken to, and your worries are misplaced."

I shook my head at this, rather hard. "But I do not understand! You are not making sense!"

He seemed to become pained at this, giving a drawn out sigh that lasted longer than it should have.

"You do realise you are being relied on... right Usagi?"

I made a aggravated noise, nodding hurriedly. "Yes of course I know that!"

"So why aren't you listening?" He said.

"But I do not understand!" I implored.

There was no reply, and my vision clouded. I shut my eyes tightly before opening them again, hoping it would clear my sight. It didn't, and now I was having trouble figuring out what I was looking at exactly. The colours had changed, the shapes seemed to have a different physicality to them, and I seemed to be in a completely different place than where I'd just been with no memory of how I got there.

"I do not understand." I said for a third time, but the words were groggy and felt almost nonsensical to me this time.

I shifted, sitting upright as I rubbed at my face, hoping to clear my head. I gave a sigh as I took a look around again. The blanket that had been draped over my shoulders fell off me as I finally recognised the wooden and paper walls around me. I blinked groggily before I stretched myself out, shaking off the last bit of sleep in my legs and arms. I gave an impulsive shudder after I'd done so. I turned to look over the rest of the room, scratching at an itch on my neck.

The rest of the futons were all empty and I could hear voices coming from downstairs. I realised I must have overslept.

I got out of bed and got dressed. As I did so I tried to recall the dream I'd had. The conversation was a little fresher in my mind than it had ever been this time but I couldn't remember who I'd been talking to, what they'd looked like or even what they'd said to me for the most part. Apart from the few disjointed sentences that came when I was waking up, the rest of it was lost. I decided to forget about it for now. I still felt uneasy and a little unsettled by whatever it is I'd experienced in the night but I was determined not to let it unhinge me. Besides, this was probably the first time I had had a strange dream and yet managed to get a decent few hours of sleep at the same time. Although exhaustion probably had more to do with that than anything else. Nevertheless, I was grateful and could feel myself thinking a little clearer again.

Once I was dressed I left the room, moving downstairs to try and find the four brothers who were most likely having breakfast. Or at least that's what I hoped they were doing, otherwise I might have overslept for longer than I would like.

"He lives!" Mikey greeted me with outstretched arms when I walked into the dining hall of the inn. I couldn't help but give a sheepish laugh.

"I suppose I am up a little later than what would be considered proper." I said as I sat down beside Donatello who shifted to make room for me.

"We were runnin' around the entire night in a blizzard after breakin' into the most guarded buildin' in the whole region. I think propriety curled up and died a long time ago." Raphael said, sticking his chopsticks in his mouth idly as he did so.

I smiled at him. I was relieved that none of them seemed irritated with me for acting in a way that I considered to be rather lazy.

"You sleep well?" Leonardo asked, the concern in his voice well hidden as he handed me a bowl of rice.

I took it gratefully, giving a nod. "Yes, for once. I must have been more worn out than I realised. I do not even remember falling asleep."

"Neither do we." Said Donatello. "We were busy talking and the next thing we know you're out like a light."

I gave an embarrassed smile at him. "I suppose you will have to fill me in on what you and Mikey-kun learned last night then."

"No need!" Mikey said rather eagerly, swallowing his entire mouthful in order to talk. "I wasn't gonna let ya miss out on the story dude so I waited 'till you woke up."

"That and Leo made ya go ta bed." Raphael said casually. Mikey gave him an irritable look.

"Well I appreciate it." I said, giving him a smile.

"Seeing as every-body's awake, maybe you can tell us your oh so secret story now?" Donatello said, giving Mikey an almost condescending look. I was confused by this but wasn't going to question it.

Mikey turned his irritation towards Donatello instead. "Well if every-one's gonna gang up on me I dunno why I should."

"Oh come on Mikey." Leonardo said, sitting back in his chair slightly, an impatient smile on his face. "We all know you're dying to tell us and if you don't tell us soon you're gonna forget the details and then what?"

Mikey made an annoyed noise but seemed to give in at this. "You guys are really lame you know that?"

"Well I want to hear." I said. "Who did you speak to?"

"Well, I was keeping watch for Donny when this maid walked into the hallway." Mikey said, his frown subsiding as he turned to look at me.

"So whaddya do?" Raphael said, giving Mikey a steady look. "Ya didn't scare her did ya?"

"Well yeah I did." Mikey said, turning to look at Raphael. "But not on purpose. She was just spooked when she saw me standing in he middle of the hallway. But I got her to believe I was some-one who worked there."

Raph made a noise at this as he turned back to his food. "Don't sound like that bright a girl ta me."

Mikey frowned again but kept going, turning to address the rest of us instead. "Anyway, I got her to think I worked there, at least long enough to tell me some things."

"Anything useful?" Leonardo asked, his arms crossed over the top of the table.

"Well I dunno." Mikey said honestly. "I guess that's gonna depend on you and Usagi. The first thing she said was that dude we saw when we first got here about hiring soldiers or whatever left town like 2 or 3 days ago."

"What for?" Raphael asked through his food, turning to give Mikey a frown.

"Well get this!" Mikey said, suddenly sounding excited. "It turns out he left town with some guards or something to... wait for it... Meet up with this lord guy!"

I felt a deep frown settle on my face at this as Leonardo spoke my thoughts for me. "Wait... Are you saying Lord Nagahashi isn't here?"

Mikey nodded eagerly. "Right! I mean how weird is that? I mean isn't that something that they should've like... told us when we were asking about signing up or whatever?"

"Not necessarily." I said, curling a hand around my chin as I thought this over. "After all, what business is it of our's really?"

"We're tryin' ta get home." Raphael said bluntly.

"I meant from their perspective." I said, giving him a sideways glance.

"Well ok. But even so!" Mikey went on, not missing a beat. "If I'm right then this guy left here the day after we had our meeting with him to go see the lord! If you ask me that's too big of a coincidence."

"I gotta agree with you." Leonardo said with a light frown. "And if that's the case did we really say something to scare him that much that he had to go report to his lord directly?"

"I dunno! Whaddya askin' me for?" Raphael said as if Leonardo had been asking him directly.

"But what does any of this mean for us?" Donatello spoke up, looking back and forth between us. "I mean, so we say something to make this informant nervous. So what? What does that have to do with portals and us getting home?"

"I dunno." Leonardo admitted. "It's clear we're going to have to ask some questions to find out."

"Ain't that what we just did?" Raphael said.

"I think we're gonna have to go on the offensive a little." Leonardo said.

"What do you mean?" Donatello said, sounding nervous.

"Well, here's what we know." Leonardo said, pressing his fingertips against the table as he spoke. "We know we can't go home because the portals have been locked. We know they've been locked because some lord is trying to invade another dimension. We know there's something weird going on in this town, and now we know that the lord himself has left. However it doesn't sound like any-one outside of the palace knows this. Every-one I've spoken to here seems to think the Lord is still in his palace."

"Kay. Great. So throw all that together and what d'we get?" Raphael said, pushing his empty bowl away absentmindedly.

"We get a lord who is doing weird and shady things, when we're stuck here because of weird and shady things." Leonardo said, summing it up rather well I thought.

"And the best thing ta do next is ask the head weird and shady guy himself directly?" Raph guessed.

"I think it's come to that." Leonardo nodded.

Raphael sank back, covering his face with his hand and grumbling something about recklessness and stupidity.

"But how're we suppose to do that?" Donatello asked. "If the Lord isn't here where the heck are we suppose to find him? We can't exactly go searching the entire Japan, even if it wasn't winter." He frowned to himself, rubbing at his chin. "I suppose we could wait until one of those armed processions again and try to follow them. But they might see us. Also we have no idea when they're planning to move out again."

"Hey hey!" Mikey interrupted, frowning again. "Would you guys kill the motor? I already know where the guy is!"

We all stopped to stare at him.

"Well ya could've said so." Raphael said, pulling a face.

"You didn't give me a chance!" Mikey shot back, he appeared to be getting angry.

"Where did he go Mikey?" Leonardo said with a calm tone of voice.

It seemed to throw some water on the situation and Mikey calmed down again. Raphael likewise took the hint and said nothing further.

"The maid said that the Lord dude is in some place called..." He furrowed his brow as he thought hard. "...What's that word? The one that sounds like 'always'?"

"Norway?" Donatello guessed, reaching into his kimono for something.

"No no." Mikey shook his head. "No I mean the word that _means_ always!"

"_Itsumo?_" I tried.

"Yeah!" He snapped his fingers and pointed at me. "Yeah that's it! It sounds kinda like that!"

"Gee. That's helpful." Raphael grumbled to himself.

This seemed to be the last straw and Michelangelo turned to face him properly. "You know what Raph-?"

"Hey, is it 'Izumo'?" Donatello interrupted before an argument could break out.

Both Mikey and Raphael turned to look at him. He had pulled out his small bound book and had turned to what looked like the back of it.

"Yeah." Mikey said, sounding taken aback. "You know it?"

"No." Donatello said. "But I made a map before we came here. There's a place called 'Izumo' on the coast not that far from here."

Mikey grinned widely at this. "That's gotta be it!"

"Izumo.." I frowned lightly, lacing my hands together. "Why does that name sound familiar to me?"

"You've probably been there before." Raphael said to me. "I mean... ya tend ta get around right?"

I gave a slow nod. "Yes... but I do not think that is it. The name means something more significant I think."

"Is it something we should be worried about?" Leonardo said, his attention focused on me.

I gave my head a shake. "No... No I do not think so. I do not remember it being dangerous but I remember there being something very important about it."

"Well as long as it means we're not gonna get eaten by like giant lizards then I think we're good." Mikey said happily.

"Ya've been watching too many Godzilla movies Mikey." Raphael groaned.

"Either that or too many B-Sci-Fi Movies." Donatello said with a chuckle.

"Where exactly am I suppose to watch any movies?" Mikey complained, throwing his hands out melodramatically. "Why's every-one on my case today?"

"Relax Mikey." Leonardo said. "No-one's on your case."

"Hmmph! Yeah right." Mikey said, crossing his arms and sulking to himself. "You guys should be thanking me for all the stuff I found out. But no, it's cool. You guys go ahead and make fun. I didn't hear any of _you_ coming back with anything useful."

"Well, technically what ya said wasn't really that useful either." Raphael said, crossing his arms behind his head and leaning back slightly. "It ain't gonna get us home is it?"

Mikey made some irritable noises but said nothing specific to this. I saw his cheeks darken slightly as his crossed arms tighten across his chest.

I gave him a sympathetic smile. "I am sure I will remember why the place is important if I think about it for a while." I tried to cheer him up. He merely grunted in reply in a manner that wasn't too different from Raphael.

Leonardo gave Mikey and understanding smile before turning to look at me. "Does some-one you know live there maybe?"

I shook my head. "Not that I know of no. Tomoe and Lord Noriyuki are from the Geishu province, Sanshobo as you know lives further South from here as does Ishida and my home is far to the North. Every-one else I know tend to move around much like I do. I don't really know of any-one along that coastline."

"Ok." Leonardo said, thinking to himself again.

"Was there an important battle there or something?" Donatello said when Leonardo went silent. "Like something historical maybe?"

"You think everythin' important is historical Don." Raphael said, giving him a sneer of a smile. Donatello just pulled a face at him.

I shook my head thoughtfully. "No, I do not think it is a battle-site. But calling it historical rings a bell."

"Hah." Donatello gave Raphael a small, victorious grin.

"Maybe there was an important ruler who was originally from there?" Leonardo suggested.

I ran a hand over my head to tussle at the fur on it. "No I do not think that is it."

"Maybe that's where they discovered somethin' important." Raphael said absently, inspecting his chopsticks. "Like.. ...Rice."

"Oh that's not offensive at all." Donatello scolded him with a disapproving expression.

"What?" Raphael shrugged. "The stuff's pretty damn important here ain't it? They make their damn houses out of it!"

"So of course Japan only has rice to offer in the way of historical discoveries." Donatello said testily.

"Hey it was just a suggestion!" Raphael snapped back.

"Urrgh!" I put both my hands to my head as I became frustrated. "Look, I am sure if I just let it sit for a while and think it over it will come to me. All we are succeeding at now is giving me a headache!"

"Jeez. Sorry." Raphael grumbled. "Was only tryin' ta help."

"And it is appreciated, but I am sure I will remember if I do no force it." I said with a sigh.

"What should we do now though?" Mikey said, breaking out his sulk. "I mean... do we just hang around here until Usagi remembers something?"

Leonardo's face turned serious again. "I don't know if that's the best idea. If anything we should be getting out of here. Those guards aren't gonna be very happy about us breaking into the palace, especially when they found out that maid blabbed to you about the lord not being here. They'll be looking for us."

"Hey yeah. That's true ain't it?" Raphael said, sitting straighter and giving an equally serious expression. "And they're gonna want us ta answer some questions about that. And I'm no history buff or nothin' but I know guys were really fond of using all kinds of creative ways ta get people to talk in this day and age."

"No kidding." Donatello said darkly.

Leonardo nodded. "I think after we pay for our food and lodging we get our stuff and we leave, before word spreads that people matching our descriptions are staying here."

"So, ya wanna go ta this Izumo place right away?" Raphael asked.

"Well Usagi said he can't remember it being dangerous, so yeah. Besides, the fact that it's an important place may have nothing to do with anything. It's like saying you shouldn't visit erm... Donny what's a good example?"

"You shouldn't visit Sweden because they once had a battle with Denmark?" Donatello suggested.

"Right." Leonardo nodded. He pushed off of the table and got up. "I say we go into town, get some provisions and then get out of here."

"Yeah, while the gettin's good." Raphael agreed.

"So we're still not heading back to Sanshobo yet." Mikey said. He sounded Disappointed.

"Not yet Mikey." Leonardo said, giving the back of his shell a well-meaning pat as he passed him.

"Figures." Mikey grumbled to himself.

"Don Usagi and I will go get some travelling food. Raph, you and Mikey stay here and keep an eye out for trouble." Leonardo said.

"You got it." Raph said, waving a hand at him slightly.

"Is that a good idea splitting us up?" I asked Leonardo as we made to leave the inn, Donatello getting up and trotting after us.

He nodded. "They saw what Donny and Mikey looked like. I don't want us moving around in a big group and attracting attention and I don't want Mikey and Don seen together either outside or at this inn."

"Good idea." Donatello said with a nod. "Best to keep it low key until we leave."

"Exactly." Leonardo nodded.

I nodded, seeing the logic in this. We left the inn and walked down the street as we tried to find some-one who sold travel-friendly foods.

"Hey Usagi. Did this place maybe have anything to do with trade-ships or something?"

"Drop it Donny." Leonardo sighed.

The streets of the town might have been swept clear but the road leading out from it had been completely covered up by snow. The storm from last night had covered the entire country-side with such a thick layer I could almost trick myself into thinking the trees of the forest looked shorter.

We had decided that the best way to travel to the northern coast was to once again head in the direction of the stream in the woods, only this time we would stick to the path and follow it towards the ocean. Leonardo seemed reluctant about the idea. I was sure this had to do with the crone we had gone to see in that forest and how he was still unnerved by her interest in Donatello. However in the light of day the forest seemed to have lost its menace and we followed the covered path quite easily as it cut a line in between the trees cleanly. It was not long before we reached the stream again and crossed the bridge going over it before following the road onwards. Leonardo seemed to calm down considerably once we were on the opposite bank of the witch's home.

I'd kept an eye open for strange lights but there were none in the daylight and a few short hours later we left the trees and were once again walking through new territory. I had found a formidably sized stick while we walked through the forest and was using it to make sure there were no sudden dips or holes hidden underneath the snow. Donatello was mimicking me with his bo. Perhaps a less ceremonious use for the weapon but a practical one nonetheless.

As we got further and further away from the town every-one seemed to calm down slightly. Not having to worry about witches or guards or any-one else who had pressing questions helped every-one's state of mind even if the cold hadn't eased up since our last cross-country trip. We were making idle small-talk as we went. Every now and then some-one questioned me, trying to offer suggestions as to why Izumo sounded familiar to me but so far nothing had triggered anything yet and eventually even Mikey had gotten bored by the game and focused on other things.

Mikey and Raphael amused themselves for a while when the younger brother pelted the other with a handful of snow which resulted in them doing wide circles around us as an angry Raphael chased him to exact revenge by cramming an armful of snow down Mikey's kimono. Other than that there were no more serious arguments. I also felt better rested than I had in days and the fact that we were doing something proactive to help my friends get home did a lot to lift my spirits.

Although truth be told I was getting use to their company and would miss it once they went back home. On the other hand though my purse was starting to suffer. I had spoken to Leonardo as we walked and we'd decided that from now on if we stayed at an inn or ryokan rice was going to have to be off the menu and we should stick to the less expensive millet instead. It was not as tasty or nutritious but it cost almost half the amount of a bowl of rice. The others didn't give their opinions on what they thought about this. Secretly I wasn't too pleased with the prospect but now was not the time to worry about things like what tastes good and what doesn't.

We made good time during the day and as night approached we'd found an old temple along the way to take shelter in. The only downside was that since it was a temple and not a house there was no fire-pit and we had to merely barricade ourselves against the cold without a fire to keep us warm. I wasn't sure whether to be amused or feel uncomfortable by how quickly Michelangelo curled himself as close to Donatello as he could for warmth, but then I am an only child and do not really know all the subtleties that comes with being a sibling to some-one else so I said nothing about it.

We decided that we should have some-one keep watch, just in case we were followed by one of the town guards or if they managed to find our trail leaving town. You could say this was a little paranoid of us but it seemed a worthy precaution to take. Raphael took the first watch while the rest of us tried to get some sleep.

I lay awake for a while, still trying to remember why the name 'Izumo' sounded so familiar to me but eventually I grew tired and fell asleep along with the others.

It was cold but I wasn't entirely uncomfortable and slept well, dreaming about stray things that didn't make much sense to any-one but were rather harmless.

Images of snow, rice-cakes and white silk played in my head idly.

There was a white screen with a strange, white frame in front of me. I blinked at it, not being able to make out the pattern that was painted on it properly. I was slightly startled when one of the patterns moved until I realised it was in fact some-one's shadow on the other side of the screen.

I relaxed after this realisation until I noticed the shadow in front of me was clearly female, and I suddenly felt like a voyeur. I aplogised before turning to look away.

The shadow turned to look at me through the screen.

"So you can see me." She said.

I frowned, turning to look back at the screen. I nodded. "Forgive me. I can see your shadow on the other side."

The figure of the woman stood frozen, but I could feel her eyes still on me. I looked around nervously, unsure of what to say.

"I.. I apologise though. I did not mean to intrude." I said, still feeling rude for being there.

"You are not the intruder." She replied. I was a little confused by this since the sentence seemed to imply that although it wasn't me, there was an intruder present. I looked around but I couldn't see any-one else.

"Where are you going young samurai?" The woman asked and I turned back to face her again.

I tried to remember but the name escaped me. "I am on the trail of a Lord to ask him some questions."

The woman took a step closer to the screen separating us. "You saw a witch recently didn't you?"

I blinked to myself but nodded. "Yes."

"She told you something didn't she?" The woman went on. I could see her raise a hand and gently lean it against the screen.

I nodded again, never thinking to ask how this woman knew these things. "She told me of a Lord trying to invade another world."

"Yes, but more importantly she also gave you a warning. A warning of a great misfortune did she not?" The woman said, leaning down and closer to the screen.

I frowned at this but nodded for the third time. "Yes. Yes she did."

I slowly became aware of the blood draining from my face as if in some horrified premonition of something to come. I felt the muscles in my arms and stomach draw tight as the shadow of the woman leaned closer and closer to the screen separating us. I wanted to take a step backwards but found myself completely frozen as if in a spell. She leaned herself closer to the screen and I thought to myself 'surely her head would touch it if she comes any closer?'

A dark circle started to appear on the screen in front of me, growing larger and larger. Long, thread-thin black strands spilled down like paint-streaks against the stainless white. An entire head passed through the physical object.

It lifted itself, facing me as two saucer-sized eyes, their irises a jaundiced yellow with pin-sized pupils bore into my own. Tears the colour of ink flowed from them as I felt the air sucked out of me.

"Then why are you ignoring her?" The eyes said.

I shot upright with a strangled cry.

"Woah!" Raphael's voice said as he started, his hands automatically drawing his twin sai from their place in his obi.

I panted, looking wildly around the dark room, reassuring myself that I was once again in the waking world. I was drenched in a cold sweat.

Beside me, Leonardo pushed himself up, blinking with wide-eyes at me. "What's going on?"

"I dunno." Raphael said, putting his sai away again but not taking his eyes of me. "You ok Usagi?"

"I... I don't know..." I said, putting a shaking hand to my forehead. The air felt cold as I breathed quickly. "I think so."

"What's all the noise?" Mikey grumbled, pushing himself up slightly and rubbing his eyes followed by the figure of Donatello sitting up with a yawn.

"It's ok guys, we're safe." Leonardo said although he was still frowning at me, moving a little closer. "You sure you're ok Usagi? You look like you've seen a ghost."

I gave a shudder at this as a chill ran up my spine but I tried to hide it, rather unsuccessfully. "I am fine. Honest. Just... Just an unnerving dream."

"Sounds a little more than just 'unnervin'" Raphael said, raising a brow at me not unsympathetically.

Mikey made a moaning sound and lay down again, eager to go back to sleep.

I took a deep breath, calming myself down. "No, it was just a dumb dream. Nothing to be concerned about."

I could see Leonardo and Raphael exchange glances with each other.

"Well ok, if you're sure." Raphael said.

I nodded. I was starting to feel silly. It was just a dream. There was no reason to be carrying on like a child, "I am sure."

Leonardo nodded but still looked concerned. "Well... Have a drink of water or something. It's a pity we don't have a fire or we could make some tea." He sighed.

I managed a shaky smile at this. "I think water would be fine."

"Dude, if it makes you feel better we're sleeping in a temple or whatever this place is. I don't think anything nightmare-ish will get us in here." Mikey said, not bothering to open his eyes.

I actually found myself chuckling at this as I looked around for our water supply and taking a sip. "I do not know how that makes a difference but perhaps you are right."

I turned to look at the humble shrine we were sleeping in front of as I drank. The stone, pupil-less gaze of the deity standing on it gazed back at me. I tried to tell myself that that stone gaze would be keeping a vigil over us.

"If ya want somethin' more realistic I'm still keepin' watch." Raphael said behind me.

I smiled at this, turning away from the deity statue. "I think that is perhaps a little more comforting than Amaterasu's gaze."

Raphael grinned at me in response.

I smiled back before suddenly something snapped into place in my head and I spun to look back at the Deity statue.

"What's up?" Raphael asked.

I felt myself break into a wide smile as I turned back to him and Leonardo who had sat up again.

"I just remember where I know 'Izumo' from!" I said proudly.

"Oh yeah?" Leonardo said, shifting to sit-up properly. I saw Donatello sit up as well as a reluctant Mikey opening his eyes to look at me.

I nodded. "Yes! It is from ancient history." I said, turning to face them properly as I put the water down again. "It is from the story of Izanami and Izanagi."

Raphael frowned. "Who?"

"Aren't those two of the Shinto gods?" Donatello said.

I gave a nod, rather surprised by their lack of knowledge although I'm not sure why.

"Yes. You see, at the beginning of the world Izanami and Izanagi were the first true people to exist and the parents of most of the 800 kami that inhabit Nippon. However, while giving birth to the kami of fire Izanami died. Izanagi, bereft at her lost travelled to Yomi, the underworld, to beg her to return. She said she would ask the king of the underworld but that Izanagi had to wait for her return and not gaze upon her while she did so. When too much time passed however he went looking for her and saw her as a hellish, decaying corpse. She was so ashamed she chased him through the seven gates of the underworld, but once he exited the last gate he sealed it with a great boulder and she was unable to pass through it."

"Nice bed-time story." Raphael said pulling a face as he shifted uncomfortably. "But what's it got ta do with anythin'?"

"Well," I said. "According to legend, the place where Izanagi sealed the gate to the underworld was Izumo."

A hush fell on our group as I let the information sink in. I suddenly felt the pride I had for remembering the story melt away as a strong feeling of unease crept over me, and by the looks on the faces of the four brothers I wasn't alone.

"Is it just me... or have things suddenly gotten a lot creepier all of a sudden." Mikey said in a rather small voice.

No-one said anything to this but it was clear we all agreed.

"I think we should pick up the pace tomorrow guys." Leonardo said, moving to lie down again. "So get some sleep."

Donatello nodded stiffly, moving to lie down as well. Mikey watched them looking honestly scared, however after a few moments he followed suit, pulling his kimono tighter around himself.

"I'll keep watch." Raphael said as if to re-establish this fact.

"I think I should take over." I said. "I do not think I am going to get much more sleep tonight."

**xxxxx**

_Ryokan – a traditional Japanese inn or hotel. Unlike the inns the group has been using a Ryokan is more than just a restaurant that has rooms to rent for the night but rather are more like a traditional hotel with the rooms all found on ground level. Almost like a modern motel._

_Yomi – The name of the underworld in both Shintoism and Buddhism. Also known as Shigoku. It translates into 'hell' more or less but is not like the western idea of hell. It's more like the Greek Hades, where all souls go after death to be purged of their karma before being reincarnated._

_Amaterasu – The sun Goddess who was born from Izanagi after he washed himself when he returned from the underworld._

_Izumo is actually an entire province of old Japan during the Sengoku/early Edo period, but I cheated this a little to narrow it down._

_Please R&R and sorry for the extensive A/N_


	29. Plans

_I don't own TMNT or UY._

**Xxxxx**

I had been properly spooked by Usagi's story last night but in the light of day superstition had died and scepticism had taken over. I don't know why after we'd been to see a witch I was still reluctant to believe all this talk of underworlds and gates to hell or whatever but I suppose that's just who I was. I relied on facts, not on folklore and legends. I was the sensible one after all.

Whether he believed in gates to the underworld or not Leo had sped up the pace and we were now moving much faster to this Izumo place than we had been yesterday. I guess it didn't matter if Leo believed it or not, the fact was that Usagi seemed to believe the legend with a faith made of steel. And if Usagi believed it that probably meant Lord Nagahashi believed it too. We weren't sure what exactly he was trying to accomplish in Izumo but the scattered pieces of the puzzle were starting to come together and forming something of a picture, and the picture wasn't exactly a comforting one.

Portals locked against invasion, and a lord who was mobilizing troops to a place where there was supposedly a gate to the world of the dead. I didn't exactly believe in the 'wold of the dead' part but if he manages to open _something_ he was almost certainly going to march his army through it and invade. It seemed a little far-fetched if you took a step back but coincidences and similarities had a way of connecting up when too many of them show up all at once.

Of our group, the only person who seemed to have taken the story to heart was Mikey, but then that's not really surprising. You could blame it on too many horror movies, or an over-active imagination or just plain childishness but Mikey was pretty skittish the next day. Raph tried to get his mind off it by pouncing on him when he wasn't expecting it but this backfired as Mikey didn't appreciate being startled at the moment and gave Raph a few less than friendly love-taps on his arm. Raph left him alone after that.

I wasn't really impressed by how quickly Mikey was letting himself get freaked out by all this but I tried to tell myself to take it easy on him. If I have to be completely honest I was still a little jealous that he'd been the one to find out some info at the palace and I was once again little more than an accessory to the whole mission. I'd been so ready to actually contribute this time. It was more than frustrating to once again feel useless and I was a little ashamed that a part of me seemed to want to take it out on Mikey. That wasn't fair. It wasn't his fault. He'd just been in the right place at the right time and was doing exactly what we wanted to do.

I dunno. I think feeling as ineffectual as I have been lately was somehow turning me into something I was not. I was never one to be envious of my brothers. Jealous maybe, but never envious. There's a big difference. You can be jealous and still hold no bad feelings towards some-one, but envy was an ugly emotion and not one I was proud of feeling.

Besides, apart from being squirrley today Mikey hadn't seem to be in the best mood for the past few days. This was always a bad sign for our group, when the goofball started acting moody. It affected the rest of us and made us wonder if things were maybe worse than we realised. I wasn't entirely sure why, but I'd noticed Mikey was complaining a lot about not going back to Sanshobo's temple. I wasn't convinced this was the only reason and I had no clue as to why he was so anxious to go back there but decided to try and go a little easier on him, despite my feelings. Besides, my emotions were my own issue, not his.

We kept making our way north and, as I was expecting, it got colder as we went. I knew from what I'd read that this side of Japan tended to pretty much freeze over in winter thanks to winds from Russia, but I decided to keep the explanation to myself. No-one looked in the mood to listen to my ramblings.

"I still can not figure out why." Usagi said at one stage as we walked through a low valley, flanked by white mountains on all sides. "Why on earth would any-one try and invade Yomi? What could he possibly be trying to accomplish?"

"If the guy's crazy it's not gonna do much good tryin' ta figure him out." Raph pointed out.

"Raph's got a point." Leo said with a nod. "I doubt we're gonna be able to follow his train of thinking if we don't know how his head works."

"What really confuses me is how he can get a whole army of wackos ta follow him." Raph said, speeding up slightly to try and keep up with Leo.

"They are samurai. It is their duty to follow their lord." Usagi said simply.

"Yeah but they gotta know how crazy this whole business is." Raph went on.

"I am sure they do," Usagi said in a soft tone. "but they are still samurai."

Raph made a noise but didn't say anything else.

"He's gotta have a pretty good reason for doing all this stuff if he's gonna put so many people in danger doncha think?" Mikey said, speeding up to not fall behind.

"Some people don't really care about things like that Mikey." I said. I admit it sounded rather pessimistic of me but it was the truth.

"If ya ask me the guy's gotta have some kind of death wish." Raph said. "Forget about riskin' an army's life, what's so important he'd risk his own like that? I mean, why try and invade somewhere people go when they die?"

I gave a shrug. I honestly had no answer.

"Do you know what I was told when I was asking around the town about a crone?" Usagi said, apparently out of the blue.

I turned to look at him questioningly. "I don't think so. Unless you told Leo or something."

"No I haven't heard this." Leo said. "What did you hear?"

"I was told by the same person who told me about the witch and the strange lights that the town we were staying in seems to be plagued by misfortunate and how the peasants were spreading ghosts stories. He said there was a popular story that the palace itself was haunted." Usagi went on.

I had to stop myself from making a noise at this. I was getting a little sick of Usagi's ghost stories. They were getting irritating. My itch was scratched though when Mikey gave a rather pathetic whine. Raph gave a bold laugh at this and caught him in a tight headlock.

"What's the matter with you?" He said, digging his knuckles into the protesting Mikey's skull. "Ya lettin' a few stupid stories get to ya or what?"

"They're not stupid!" Mikey said with an annoyed voice, trying to wriggle free of Raph. "They're creepy!"

"This one is not, I promise." Usagi said with a small smile. "Mostly because I do not believe a word of the palace being haunted. It sounds like nothing but over-sensationalized gossip. Besides it is not this supposed haunting that is important."

"Oh yeah?" Raph said, releasing Mikey who gave him a half-hearted shove which Raph didn't even bother acknowledging.

"No." Usagi went on. "The real reason I bring it up is because of the reason people are claiming the palace is haunted." He tugged at his kimono absentmindedly. "I was told that Lord Nagahashi had a son."

"Do you think he's in on this whole plan?" Leo asked. "I mean do you think maybe he's working behind the scenes of it or something."

Usagi shook his head. "Not at all. You see from what I heard the boy was perhaps only around 8 years old or so."

"Not exactly the type ta go raise an army." Raph said.

I frowned though as I realised something. "You're using past tense." I said to Usagi.

He nodded, a little more solemnly. "I was told the boy had died, perhaps about 2 months ago. Apparently he had been ill for a short period before he passed away."

"That sucks." Mikey said with honest empathy.

Usagi nodded again, he'd gotten use to some of our more commonly used slang by now. "I do not remember the person saying that Lord Nagahashi was bereft at this but I think it goes without saying. The loss of any child is a tragedy."

"No kidding." Leo said in a serious tone of voice. "But... if you'll excuse me for sounding a little cold-hearted, you said you think this might have something to do with what's going on now?"

Usagi made a noise and chewed on his lower lip. "I do not really want to speculate and come up with false conclusions, but if I just think about what we know so far it is another coincidence that is a little too convenient for me. Lord Nagahashi loses a child, then starts moving troops to Izumo where the gate to the underworld is suppose to be. It is a simple matter of putting 2 and 2 together." He sighed slightly. "But as I said, this is just speculation on my part."

"Well I'm with you." Raph said. "So far it seems ta be the only reason fer this guy to do something crazy that makes any sense if ya ask me. Besides him just bein' nuts."

Leo nodded. "'And even if it's far-fetched I agree that it's another coincidence that's just too big to ignore."

"Wait a minute I don't get it." Mikey said, stumbling slightly over something under the snow but keeping his balance with a few well-placed steps. "Are you saying this lord dude is gonna invade this underworld-whatever place because his kid died? Why?"

"Yomi is where people go once they die." Usagi said.

"Yeah but.. so what? This guy's gonna invade the dimension of ghosts and stuff to get his kid back? Really?" Mikey said, sounding as if he didn't believe it for a moment.

Usagi nodded. "It is the best reason I can think of to do something insane such as this."

"But why?" Mikey went on. "He's formed an entire army, he's gone all the way to this Izumo place in the middle of winter and is gonna launch a full-scale invasion just to get back his son?"

"Yes." Usagi said.

"Isn't that kinda extreme?" Mikey said, pulling a face.

Usagi shook his head. "...I would do it."

We walked in silence for a while after that.

It only took about 3 or 4 days for us to reach a small town near the coast with the pace Leo had been setting. We got up early in the morning and milked the day for all the sunlight it was worth, sleeping wherever we could find proper shelter. We only lost one day where a storm kicked up again and we were forced to stay put in an abandoned house we'd found. It was over-grown but it was also rather large and its walls and roof were still holding firm so there wasn't too much to worry about.

We were all relieved however when we came across a small village the next day and found it had an inn which was all too happy to have us as customers. They were a little less impressed when we kept ordering nothing but gruel to eat but they didn't complain too loudly.

We were actually planning to just stay the night until the innkeeper brought us some supper and said in passing. "We don't get many visitors this time of year, but the large presence of guards has scared off those that we had."

"Guards?" Leo said, instantly giving the innkeeper his full attention. "What guards?"

"Oh it's nothing to worry about!" The innkeeper said quickly, probably afraid that he'd scare off his only patrons. "They're not coming to this village anyway! They are a good distance to the west from here and they're closer to the next town over so they don't even come here for supplies. I am sure they won't cause you any trouble."

Raph was grinning to himself widely but Leo gave the innkeeper a more honest smile. "Oh no, we're not concerned. We ah... we're actually relieved. We've heard there were some bandits around this area so the guards will probably stop any trouble right?"

"I suppose so." The innkeeper said with a small huff. "But it's not very good for business." He smiled at us again. "But if you're not bandits and you don't mind the presence of guards then I suppose it works out fine. Although from the mons my wife has spotted them bearing they appear to be Lord Nagahashi's men. Just between you and me I'm not overly happy about his men's presence near our home."

"You don't like him?" Mikey asked, eagerly taking his bowl and tucking in without even breaking eye-contact with the man.

"I'm not a man of politics." The innkeeper said as he put down our cups along with a small, white teapot. "But all I know is that there have been strange rumours coming from the south regarding him." He gave us another smile. "You tend to hear things when you own a place like this. Besides," He sighed. "I have never seen as many of his samurai around these parts as I have in the past week or so."

"Well like you said, they're closer to the next town over right?" I said, carefully probing the innkeeper for information without making it sound too suspicious.

"Yes. They came here once or twice when they first arrived but they seemed to have realised the next town over is larger and has more supplies and provisions than us. We're just a simple coastline village. We mostly have only fish, and with this weather not even too much of that." The innkeeper said.

"Sounds perfect." Raph said, his grin still on his face. I wasn't sure if he was talking to the innkeeper or to us.

"Perhaps, but I will be happier when they're gone." The innkeeper said, giving us a small bow before turning to let us eat in peace.

"It does sound perfect right?" Raph said, turning to the rest of us and more specifically to Leo.

Leo gave a small nod, thinking it over. "It does... if we're not too far from whatever encampment Nagahashi has set up."

"What exactly is the plan?" Usagi said, picking up the teapot and pouring a cup before handing it to Raph and pouring another one. "Are we just going to try and speak to Lord Nagahashi and then leave again? How are we going to manage something like that without getting killed?"

"Do we even need to?" Mikey said, sounding unenthusiastic. "I mean.. we kinda figured out what he's doing on our own didn't we?"

"We have theories and guesses, but not solid facts." I said. "That's not enough to do anything with."

"What do we do anyway?" Mikey went on. "Let's just say this guy's all 'oh yeah! I'm opening a gate to hell and stuff so they probably locked the portals to keep me out.' What are we gonna do about it? Ask him nicely to stop?"

"Spazz has a point." Raph said, pulling his bowl closer and scooping up some food.

"If he is doing what we think he is doing, we will need to find a way to stop him." Usagi said as if it was the simplest thing in the world.

"Him and his army." I said.

"Yes." He nodded. "But first we need to be certain he is in fact trying to do what we think he is. We need answers before we can react."

"Ok, so lemme ask again." Mikey said. "How exactly do we do that?"

"We need to talk to Nagahashi himself, but obviously he's not gonna want to see 5 random people if we just ask, so here's what I'm thinking." Leo said, sitting up straight. "I say we put our cards on the table. We go to see whoever's willing to see us and tell him that we want to see the lord because we know what he's doing. We should make a point of openly mentioning invasion of another world. That way we don't give away everything we know but we let them know that we know more than just thinking they're trying to invade this part of the country or something."

"And if they try ta kill us on sight the second we mention it?" Raph said in an attempt to be helpful.

"Then we fight them off and run like hell." Leo said.

"No pun intended." I groaned.

Raph, strangely echoed my groan. "Ya know Leo... I've been playin' a little bettin' game with myself lately, where I try and think of the craziest, most dangerous plan I can and then bet that that's exactly the plan you're gonna make us do. I ain't lost so far."

Leo frowned at this. "What's that suppose to mean exactly?"

"Well look." Raph said, sitting up again. "It seems ever since we got here ya've slowly been losin' your mind or somethin' because every time ya come up with a plan it's the most stupidest thing I've ever heard in my life. It's like you're actively tryin' ta get us all killed or somethin'. I really don't know what's gotten into ya but I'm gettin' tired of it."

"I thought you'd be the first to agree to something reckless and dangerous." Leo said with a cold tone of voice.

"Usually yeah! Sure!" Raph said, surprisingly not taking the bait for a fight. "But this is like one thing after another bro. I just don't get why you're suddenly this crazy dare-devil who wants ta do all these insane things when ya know they'll probably get us killed."

"I am just trying to get us home Raph." Leo said, his voice rising slightly. "If I could come up with better, safer ideas you better believe I would choose them above anything else, but so far I haven't had the luxury. I take what I can Raph and lately I haven't been given much of a choice as to what we should do. If you have better ideas then you should say them because believe me, I would welcome something that _doesn't_ make me age 10 years every day."

Raph gave a grunt at this, sinking back slightly. "I ain't got anythin' better." He admitted. "I just don' like how easy you're makin' us do these things."

"I am trying to get us home Raph." Leo repeated with a heavy streak of conviction. "I will _not_ just sit here and wait for things to work themselves out on their own. Life has _never_ taught me that things like this will work out if you just roll over and wait. So yes! I'd love to just sit back and choose the easy way but so far the only 'easy way' has been 'sit back, keep quiet, and wait for something to happen', and that doesn't work for me."

Raph said nothing, his arms crossed as he stared back at Leo with hard eyes. I couldn't figure out if he was angry and just biting it back or if he was thinking over what Leo said. Raph isn't really the kind to calmly listen to the other person's side of an argument, but then he's not the type to bottle up his anger either.

Leo sat back down in his chair properly but didn't break eye-contact with him. I cleared my throat, feeling I should say something although I had no idea what.

"I think.." I eventually choked out, causing every-one to turn their gaze towards me. "I think... we should ask some-one what's going on." I got out eventually. "But maybe not Nagahashi himself."

"Who then?" Leo asked, still looking irritable.

"Well." I Said, putting my hands together business-like. "There are all kinds of guards around aren't there? Couldn't he press one of those to tell us what's going on?"

"Oh geez, we just did that!" Raph complained.

I nodded. "Yes but this time we're not running blind in a palace. They'll be in an encampment out in the open. We should be able to identify the captains pretty easily since they'll be in uniform. If we can get one of them away from the rest of the camp and ask him some questions we wouldn't need to stroll into the camp and announce ourselves."

I tried not to smile as I was quite proud of this idea. It incorporated Leo's plan without putting us in as much danger, I was happy that I'd found a compromise between him and Raph.

"I am afraid it will not work." Usagi said with a sigh.

I almost snapped at him with a 'oh what do you know' but bit my tongue.

"Why not?" Mikey asked.

"First of all, I do not see how we would manage to get a captain away from an encampment, and second of all even if we did there is no earthly chance that any samurai who has been promoted to captain would so readily betray his own lord." Usagi said.

"You don't think so?" I asked before I could stop myself.

He pulled a slight face. "There will always be traitors in life, this is true, but if you can not offer them a proper price in exchange for their information I doubt even some-one of that sort would tell you anything."

I gave an irritable sigh but said nothing else. I was more disappointed than anything that my idea had been dismissed so easily.

"Hey! I got an idea!" Mikey said as if to add to my horror. "What if we do like Donny says, but we trick one of the lower guard people to tell us what's going on!"

"What makes you think they'd know?" Raph asked before I could.

"Well they're here aren't they?" Mikey said. "So they gotta know _something_! I say we get a guard away from where the others can hear and ask him instead."

"And how are we suppose ta do that without causin' a commotion?" Raph asked again.

"There will most likely be guards on night watch duty around the encampment." Usagi said. "We could approach one and under the cover of darkness make as if we are also from the camp. If we word it right we can probe him for information without him realising anything is wrong."

"I like that." Raph said, as if his stamp of approval was needed or something. "We can still learn what we wanna know without giving 'em a chance ta hack us ta pieces."

"What do you think Leo?" Mikey asked, turning to blink at him.

Leo was thinking to himself, apparently running the idea over in his head. "Do you really think we can fool them into thinking we're from the same camp?"

Usagi gave a hesitant nod. "If we do it at night and can find a guard who does not look like he is particularly focused on his job, we might be able to pull it off."

Leo gave a slow nod at this, frowning to himself again. I watched him silently for a few minutes but he seemed miles away.

"Leo?" Mikey eventually tried.

He gave a small nod before he unfolded his arms and gave a more definite nod. "It's a long shot, but it's still a safer idea than mine. I say we give it a try."

Mikey smiled proudly at this. "So when are we gonna do this thing?"

"Tomorrow night." Leo said, picking up his cup and taking a drink. "We get some proper sleep tonight and iron out the details tomorrow. After that we move."

"Sounds like a plan." Raph said, grinning happily to himself again.

"_My_ plan dude!" Mikey said, mirroring his expression.

"Yes yes. Well done Mikey." I said as I drank my tea, trying hard to keep the jealousy out of my voice.

**Xxxxx**

_Please R&R_


	30. Motives

_I don't own TMNT or UY._

_EDIT: I see FF is not accepting how I would "break" my stories any more. I don't know if the past chapters have been affected or not. I've tried fixing this by adding a bunch of x's at the break. Sorry if it was confusing before. I'll be fixing this in later chapters.  
_

**Xxxxx**

Man did I hate being outside at night in this cold! At least there wasn't a blizzard this time. And yeah I admit, there isn't exactly a better time to do our ninja stuff. I just hoped we could find somebody, ask our questions and then get back to the small village we were staying at.

It hadn't been that hard to find the encampment, they were obviously not trying to hide where they were as there were a lot of torches burning as well as a good number of campfires. The place looked big. Big enough to make me nervous about what we were taking on here. Even if we got some answers how exactly were we gonna stop this guy? It was a tricky question but I had one way at least, although I hadn't said it out loud yet.

My plan was to go up to this Lord guy and skewer him with a sai right between his eyes. _That _should solve several of our problems. But I knew Leo and I knew Donny and I sure as hell knew Mikey. They weren't gonna be too happy about the idea of just offing a guy if they could figure out a different way to do things. Usagi on the other hand might be easier to sway. It's not that the guy's cold-hearted, far from it, but he seemed to have a better grasp on when you gotta get your hands dirty and when you can try a less violent approach. If you ask me when you start dealing with guys in power with armies trying to open gates to hell or whatever, you don't try and reason with them. You stick 'em and then run.

I wasn't really sure how to actually get close enough to the guy to do it without getting murdered myself but I was still working out the finer details. Besides, I was kinda hoping Leo would come up with a better plan, although why I dunno. Leo's plans haven't exactly been impressing me lately.

Anyway, we pretty much settled ourselves in the tiny village's inn as our HQ and decided to make our move tonight and try to figure out what was going on here, what we were dealing with and, hopefully, how to put a stop to it. I mean the idea itself wasn't that complicated. We can't get home because of this douche-bag, so get him to stop what he's doing and we should be good. It's the details that were the problem.

Now I wasn't the kinda guy to be blinded by details. If I'll be honest I tended to have quite an eye for them. But at the same time I was also a guy who liked to do this straight-forward if I could, mostly because people seem to usually let details get the better of them so a straight-forward action tends to catch them off guard. I was willing to do this step-by-step thing for a little while longer though, especially since no-one's gotten killed yet and I do admit, when dealing with situations like this running in guns-a-blazin' was probably not the best way to go.

I stepped lightly over the fresh snow, dodging scraggly bushes and branches as I did. Master Splinter spent a life-time training me how to move like I was a friggen ballet dancer or something and I was making full use of those skills tonight. It felt a little weird with the kimono on but then having a familiar silhouette to whoever was on guard should help me in getting them to think I was part of their little army here.

My 3 brothers and Usagi had split up to try and find a guard somewhere along the rest of the perimeter of this encampment. Usagi had made himself pretty damn useful, explaining how the encampment should be set up and where we should try looking for guards. The guy knows his stuff, and better yet he knew his stuff in a practical way that I could actually understand, rather than Donny who often buries me in his big words and technicalities. No offence to Don of course.

I was making my way through the woods as I tried to find some-one on guard duty. To my right I could hear the not too distant sound of the ocean. I was hoping we could maybe have a look at it when we weren't so preoccupied with all this stuff since I've never actually seen a proper beach before. It sure smelled better than the Hudson bay I'll tell ya that much.

I kept going until I finally spotted the figure of some-one not too far ahead of me. He wasn't wearing his helmet, just the fitted brass armour and I could see his arms wrapped around himself as he leaned against a large rock, looking out in the direction the sea was, although it was invisible from here.

I slowed as I approached him, the snow helping to muffle my footsteps. The guard looked kinda young but still older than I was. Although he looked pretty impressive in his armour it was clear from his body language he was anything but happy about standing out here in the snow keeping watch. Poor guy. I had to sympathize.

I waited until I was nearly on top of him before I stopped the effort to hide my footsteps.

"Yo!" I called out, deliberately trying to startle him and getting some nice satisfaction when I saw him jump.

"Who- Who's there?" he demanded, his hand gripping his sword as he drew it immediately.

"Woah woah! Relax buddy!" I said, holding up my hands. "Kinda jumpy there aren't ya?"

The guard frowned at this but I could see him faintly relax as he realised I wasn't gonna eat him or something. "Who is it?"

"I thought you could use a warmer-upper." I said, fully aware that this wasn't answering his question as I pulled out a small but still inviting Sake bottle we'd bought off the innkeeper. "No-one should be made ta stand in the snow like this without a little compensation am I right?"

The guard relaxed at this, sheathing his sword again and taking the bottle gratefully. I could see him still looking me over though, obviously not trusting me completely. I was a little worried that I might've picked a guard with too much brain to try and question but made sure to keep up my act.

"Whazza matter? Ya think I'm gonna poison you or something?"

He shook his head, uncorking the bottle. "No... I just do not recognise you. Are you from the camp?"

"Yeah." I lied. "I mean who else is gonna be crazy enough ta stand out here freezin' ta death but one of Lord Nagahashi's men am I right?"

The guard gave a light laugh at this, and I knew I was in. "That's true. You'll have to forgive me. This place is giving me the creeps."

"I heard that." I said, leaning against the guard's rock slightly without getting too close. I didn't want him to get too good a look at me. "Just between you and me I'd rather not be anywhere near this place."

"It's not so much the place itself. It's more being here with what our Lord plans to do." He said as he took a long draw from the bottle. "Not that I would ever say anything against our Lord."

"Nah of course not." I said. I could hardly believe my luck. This schmuck was pretty much writing my lines _for_ me. And here I thought I was gonna have to find a clever way to get the topic onto this lord guy.

"I gotta agree with ya, this whole thing is pretty crazy." I said.

"Don't let any of the guard captains hear you say that." He warned me as he wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. "They've been putting a damper on any-one spreading ill-rumours about this operation."

"Got it." I said, making a note of that little fact in case it turned out to be useful. "But just between you and me, this whole thing is kinda messed up."

He gave a light laugh again and nodded. "Agreed." He turned to look at me although I hoped he couldn't make out too much in the dark. "Hiroshi."

I blinked for a moment before I realised he'd just introduced himself. "Raph." I said, I saw no reason why I shouldn't give my real name.

"That's an odd name." Hiroshi commented but didn't seem too interested in an explanation.

"What do you make about all of this?" I asked before the conversation got too off topic. "I mean this whole plan of trying to open a way into this... this place."

It was a high gamble. After all we were still just guessing that that's what Lord Nagahashi was trying to do, but if I was gonna get anything useful I needed to take a few risks.

Hiroshi gave a shudder at this as he pulled away from his drink. "Ugh. Don't even remind me. Do not misunderstand me, my loyalty is and always will be with Lord Nagahashi... but I would be a fool not to be at least a little bit frightened of what it could mean to break a seal to another plain of being. And to have it be _shigoku_ itself." He gave a short laugh. "I guess never has the term _Shigoku-Tabi_ been as fitting."

I forced a small laugh too although I didn't really get the joke. It was hard to do as well seeing as I felt my stomach plummet a little at this news. So this lord guy _did_ think he was gonna try and open a door to the underworld or whatever. I wasn't sure that was really possible, but whether it was or not, it spelled trouble.

"He's gotta be pretty sure of himself though." I said, trying to milk as much info as I could before my cover was blown. "I mean... ya gotta have some serious 'nads to try something like this. But I guess he's got good reasons."

The guard gave a slightly more serious nod. "Some days when I get really scared of the prospect of what we're doing it is the only thing egging me onwards."

I frowned lightly at this. I mean I know Samurai are loyal and all but did he really care about this Lord guy so much he felt saving the guy's kid was a good reason to die? I decided to try and say this without exactly saying it just to make sure.

"Ya really feel for the guy then enh?"

"What?" He turned to blink at me, looking a little confused.

"Well, ta empathize with him doin' all this. If ya feel that strongly about it." I went on. I was playing it cool but I could feel myself getting a little on edge.

"What do you mean?" Hiroshi asked. I could see him frowning slightly. "He's doing this for the good of all of us."

This time I was the one who frowned. I decided to play it straight and hope not to get sliced for it. "Ain't he doin' this ta get his son back?"

To my relief, the guard seemed to relax at this. "Oh I see. No. No that was the initial rumour going around but that's not his real reason."

"Oh?" I said, cocking a brow at him. I was honestly surprised. Why the hell else would some-one act this insane?

"It is part of the reason." The guard said, still drinking from the sake bottle. "But he is not thinking of reclaiming his son. The best way to describe it is, he is trying to prevent any-one going through the same torment he went through when young Prince Fuyuki died."

"I don't get it." I said. I honestly didn't.

The guard turned to blink at me again. "You better clear up what you are going to do once we break the seal with your superior if you are so ill-informed. But basically, Lord Nagahashi has lived through the torment and suffering that comes from losing a loved one so abruptly, and has realised that it is unfair of the gods to ask mortals to go through such pain. So he is marching on Yomi to find Enma himself... and to kill him. If we manage to do that we should be able to rid ourselves of this curse of death." He took a deep drink after this sentence as if to drown himself. "That is why I follow him."

A far off look seemed to come over him as he twisted the sake bottle idly in his hands. "No-one should suffer losing a loved one..."

That seemed to be it and I stood there in awkward silence for a few moments, half unsure of what to say to the guy and half completely mortified at what I just heard. This lord guy was even more delusional than we thought! I mean my God. I've heard of some crack-pot ideas before... ..this one wins. I had no idea who the hell 'Enma' is but it didn't sound good. Not at all.

I decided I'd heard enough and I should get out of there while I was still in the guard's good books. I gave a sigh and pushed off the rock, trying to think of what I could say to kinda close off the discussion.

"I guess you got a point." I lied. _Oh_ how I lied.

He seemed to snap out of it slightly and turned to give me a nod, taking this as a parting line.

"I better get back before they start missing me." I said which, I gotta admit, was partly true in a way.

"Thanks for the drink." Hiroshi said.

"No worries." I said as I turned to make a deceptively calm walk back into the woods.

"And check in with your supervisor!" He called after me. "You don't want to be in the wrong place when we march into this thing!"

"You can say that again." I said, more to myself than to him.

xxxxxxxxxxxxx

Usagi nearly choked on his tea. Mikey had to give him a few good slaps on the back before he could talk again.

"He is planning on doing _What?_" He burst out as soon as he could.

I gave a small shrug. "Just like I told ya. I'm just the messenger."

"Gods." Usagi ran both his hands over the top of his head. "I mean... my _Gods_! The man is completely stark raving mad!"

"Nooooo argument here." I said, sitting back slightly.

I watched Usagi as he got up and started pacing back and forth in front of us. Mikey and Donny were following him as if they were watching a tennis match in slow motion.

"Do you have any idea, _Any idea_ what could happen if there is any chance at all of this Lord succeeding?" He said, not slowing out of his pace and not really addressing any-one in particular.

"Er... Old testament world destruction type stuff?" Mikey guessed.

Usagi gave a groan, running his hands over his face but not stopping. "I only understood about half of that and I still feel I can honestly answer 'yes'."

"Relax Usagi." Leo said, finally getting up to try and get the rabbit to stop giving himself a heart attack. "We're here to stop him aren't we?"

"As well as his army." Donny pointed out rather unhelpfully.

"Dude shut up!" Mikey hissed at him through clenched teeth as he gave Donny's plastron a light slap with the back of his hand.

"No, He is right!" Usagi said but he didn't sound too happy about it. "How on Earth are we ever going to prevent this from happening? Why did we not have some kind of plan? What were we _doing_ on the way over here?"

"Usagi, seriously relax! You're gonna give yourself an aneurism!" Donny said, sounding guilty for bringing it up. I wasn't really sure whether he was being dramatic or serious.

Leo somehow managed to put a hand on they guy's shoulder and I dunno how hard he must've squeezed it but he got Usagi to stop wearing a hole in the floor. Usagi gave a hard sigh instead, raising his hands as if Leo was arguing with him or something.

"I'm fine." He said before Leo could even open his mouth.

"Good." Leo let him go. "Now, instead of focusing on what's standing in our way let's try and come up with a plan of action."

"I got one." I said, deciding maybe now was a good time to spring my idea, although I wasn't expecting a standing ovation. The rest of the guys all turned to stare at me.

"We find this Lord guy, and we stick somethin' sharp through him. That oughta do it." I said simply.

Leo immediately fixed me with an unimpressed, flat stare. Usagi merely blinked at me.

"Erm... yeah. And how exactly are we suppose to get close enough to do that?" Don asked. I was a little surprised that that was his first concern and not the fact that I just suggested we kill a guy.

I gave a shrug. "I was thinkin' of leavin' the details up to the rest of ya ta figure out."

"Well we're not, because we're not doing that." Leo said.

"Right." I said with a grunt although I hadn't really been expecting a different reaction.

"But what _do_ we do?" Usagi said. "We have to do _something_ to stop this from happening!"

"Well, if we're not gonna kill the dude... maybe we should like... stop him from opening the portal?" Mikey suggested, sounding unsure.

"And how exactly do we do that?" I said, putting on an act of being insulted that they didn't take my idea seriously if only for the sake of my pride. "Just walk up ta the guy and back-hand him ta make him stop?"

"What's with the violence Raph?" Don said, pulling a face at me. I merely shot him an irritable look.

"No no! We don't talk to the guy or anything." Mikey said, uncrossing his legs and re-crossing them. "Like... It's like when you have a little kid right? And he's uhm... He's always drawing on the walls! So ya don't put the kid up for adoption right? You take away the crayons so he can't do it any more." He gave a lopsided grin. "I mean right?"

"So what are you saying?" Leo said with a serious frown. "We take away whatever he's planning to use to open this portal?"

Mikey nodded eagerly. "Yeah! I mean we have to draw symbols and stuff and you gotta say that chant and stuff for _us_ to go anywhere. I mean they're not just gonna knock on the door and be let in right?"

"Yeah, but we don't need anything else but some chalk and the chant." Donny said. "If some-one was gonna try to stop us from opening a portal they'd have to destroy all the chalk in New York or something."

"Opening a portal to your world or the battle Nexus might be simple, but we are talking about Yomi and a pre-existing gate that was sealed by a _kami_ thousands of years ago." Usagi pointed out. "I think opening such a doorway would require you to do more than draw some symbols and recite an incantation."

"Do you have any idea what that could be?" Leo said, turning to face him. When Usagi shook his head Leo turned back to face all of us. "Then I suggest we make our first priority trying to figure out what Nagahashi is planning to do to open this portal."

"And we're gonna be doin' that by sneakin' around some more right?" I said, pulling a pointed face at Leo. "Or are ya gonna suggest we base-jump into the camp or somethin'?"

Leo gave me a hard frown at this, not appreciating my comment at all. "We're going to find out what we can Raph. And we're gonna do it with as little risk as possible. Besides, I thought you'd have gotten tired of all this information gathering by now."

I gave a growl, gritting my teeth but I couldn't think of anything to say that wouldn't sabotage myself.

"You might as well relax Raph, because until we know how Nagahashi is planning to go through with his plan we can't do anything." He turned to the others again, turning his little lecture into a debriefing. "We should also try and see if we can figure out things like how many men he might have, how they're armed and what kind of weapons he might have. We're gonna have to move fast. We have no idea how long he's had to set up his plans here and he could be ready to put his plans into action as we speak. We rest up tonight and tomorrow we'll decide how we should scout out the camp and what we should be looking for exactly."

The other three nodded. I brooded to myself but made a noise in agreement.

Leo gave a nod as well. "Ok then. I suggest we end the meeting there and get some sleep. And I don't wanna hear any whining about not being tired yet Mikey!"

"Dude! Why ya gotta throw me under the bus like that?" Mikey complained, getting up from the table and following Leo as he and Usagi turned to head upstairs.

"Because he knows you." Donny said with an exaggerated eye-roll.

"He'll probably be the first one out." I said, giving Mikey a sneer.

He shot me an angry pout in return. I was just yanking his chain though. To be honest I wasn't sure if any of us were gonna get proper sleep tonight. I might be able to and I think Don would be smart enough to copy me, but the other three I wasn't so sure about. Mikey seemed to be coping with this whole thing better than he was a few days ago but he could be pretty good with hiding how he really felt so I wasn't sure. As for Leo, he's probably gonna be making plans on what to do the whole night. I'll have to make sure to chuck a pillow at him if he tries to pull an all-nighter.

Usagi was pretty worked up about all this but even if he wasn't I wouldn't bet money on him getting sleep tonight. He seems to have been going through some bad insomnia lately for some reason. Somewhere in the back of my head I wondered if it was because we were slowly dragging him into bankruptcy. However my gut told me that wasn't it. I was concerned, but I figured it wasn't my place to mommy the guy. I'd leave that up to Leo.

"I'm on a roll with the plans lately huh?" Mikey said to no-one in particular.

"Shut up Mikey." Donny grumbled.

**Xxxxx**

_This fic should've been called "Sitting and talking"._

_Please R&R._


	31. Donny's Request

_I don't own TMNT or UY_

**xxxxx**

I somehow managed to get sleep that night which kinda surprised me. Although I guess have Raph to thank for that. I had been lying awake, trying to figure out different ways we could try and handle this whole situation when Raph started to bully me with his pillow, telling me to follow my own advice and get some sleep. I eventually got bored by him annoying me and rolled over to go to sleep.

The next morning I found myself the first person awake. For real this time. I double checked and was more than relieved to see Usagi still curled on his futon, clutching his blankets tightly in his sleep. I decided to go downstairs and see if our host was up yet. I wasn't really sure if the innkeeper was gonna wake up at the crack of dawn to serve 5 people who apparently enjoyed sleeping in.

"You were up late last night." He commented with a smile as I came downstairs. He was busy unbolting the door, signaling that he'd probably just got up himself.

I gave him a self-conscious smile at this, moving to sit down at one of the few tables. "We had some things we had to discuss. I hope we didn't keep you and your wife up."

He made a noise, waving off my concern. "There was no chance of us hearing you from our room, I assure you."

I smiled. "Good." I said, and not only because it meant we weren't keep our hosts up, but also because that meant they wouldn't have heard all the crazy plans we'd been making. I hope he was telling the truth and not just trying to be hospitable.

"Do you have the kitchen going yet?" I asked him when my stomach reminded me how long ago supper was.

The man gave a light-hearted laugh and a nod. Moving in the direction that led to the back rooms. "I don't think the fire is hot enough yet but I can try and get some tea going in the meantime."

I smiled again and gave a nod as I watched him leave. I had to say, I kinda liked the guy. Every inn we'd stayed at before had more than just a couple of people in it so I never really spoke to any of the owners, but this guy seemed cool. He struck me as a little more laid back than the average innkeepers had been so far. Probably because he didn't have to deal with a lot of customers in such a small town, even when there wasn't a ton of soldiers in the area.

I waited for him to come back with something resembling tea. In the meantime I tried to think about what Raph had told us about Nagahashi's plans. He said that the guard he'd found told him Nagahashi is planning on not just invading this other dimension but he was actually planning on killing this 'Enma' who I was guessing was the guy in charge of the place. Now as far as this place being 'The Afterlife' was concerned, if I had to be honest I hadn't been thinking about that side of it too much. Intentionally. It's not really something I felt I wanted to explore. It raised too many existential questions that I was uncomfortable with. I was tackling the idea as this is another dimension and this Lord is going to invade it and cause trouble which will almost certainly cause problems in Usagi's dimension too.

Even if it doesn't physically affect Usagi's dimension at all, if the news of 'The Lord who killed The King of Yomi' gets spread around the country people are going to take notice. I may not be a history buff but I knew enough to know it's claims to fame like that that propels people into rather high seats of power. Frankly, I didn't think Nagahashi's actions painted him as some-one I'd like running my country. Besides, if he killed the guy in charge then this Enma couldn't unlock the portals and we couldn't go home.

Even if you cut away all the rather unnerving religious sides to this it still gave us enough reasons not to want this guy to succeed.

I dropped my line of thinking when I heard some-one else coming down the stairs. I turned to see the groggy figure of Usagi stumble down the stairs before coming towards my table rubbing at his face in the universal sign of still being half asleep.

I tried to fight down a chuckle at this and merely gave him a 'good morning' instead.

"_Ohayo_." He mumbled back before dropping onto the bench opposite me.

"You look terrible." I commented lightly, eyeing the fur on his head sticking out at odd angles.

Usagi made a meaningless noise at this, rubbing at his eyes before giving his head a slight shake in an attempt to wake up properly. "Is there any tea?"

"The innkeeper said he was going to brew some." I said, still grinning at him.

Usagi gave a nod, apparently he seemed to be waking up a little bit more. "How long have you been up?"

"Like 5 minutes." I said.

"Oh, so you managed to get some sleep then." He said with a relieved smile.

I rolled my eyes. "Yeah, thanks to _certain_ people. Raph seems to have gotten into the habit of criticizing me whenever he can."

"He does it because he cares." Usagi said. I already knew this but still felt a little weird at having the obvious said out loud like that.

"Whatever." I brushed it off. "I guess I should thank him. I don't think I would've slept otherwise." I was suddenly struck with a thought as I said this and leaned onto my elbows a little more. "Did _you_ sleep well?"

He gave a nonsensical noise at this with a sneer, waving me off. "It seems I have grown out of the habit of sleeping well."

"Really?" I said, pulling a face. I was referring to the fact that he hadn't slept well more than his over-dramatic statement.

"Indeed." he nodded with a sigh. "Is it pathetic to admit that I am more annoyed by it than worried by now?"

"Not really." I gave a half shrug. "But at least you got some rest right? You looked pretty out when I left the room."

"Are you in the habit of watching me sleep?" He said with a rather obnoxious grin.

I frowned at him, not appreciating the comment. "I make it a habit of checking every-one's ok when I wake up."

"Paranoia at its finest." Usagi said, still grinning at me. "But yes, I suppose I must have slept at least some. You can not exactly have nightmares while you are awake."

"Well you can, but they tend to be a little worse." I said, rolling my eyes. "Seriously, what's up with you and bad dreams lately? You're like a 3 year old or something. Normally I'd suggest seeing a shrink about it if I didn't know you didn't have things like that here."

He blinked blankly at me.

"A shrink is some-one who treats crazy people." I said, mirroring his grin from earlier.

This seemed to rub him the wrong way and he pulled a face at me. "I am not crazy."

"Oh yeah?" I said with a slight scoff. "You're having nightmares pretty much every night now, you're hardly sleeping because of it and, oh yeah! Let's not forget you've seen things that aren't there twice now. If you ask me if those aren't textbook signs of being a little cracked then I don't know what-"

"I am not _Crazy!_" He suddenly barked, slamming his hands on the table.

I swallowed the end of my sentence as I stared at him, completely dumbstruck by the sudden change in mood. I was glad it was just the two of us or Mikey might have pointed out that mood-swings were another sign of being mentally unstable. Usagi stared back at me, looking either angry or insulted. I couldn't really tell which.

"Alright man." I said after a pause. "It was just a joke. Relax."

He gave a small, short grumble but sunk back down in his seat. He kept a slight frown as he stared at me.

"Jeez." I said, trying to defuse the situation as I gave him a lopsided smile. "You don't have to be so touchy about it. D'you think I'd joke about something like that if I believed it?"

"I do not know." He said, although it came out sounding more like a sulk than an angry remark as he folded his arms ontop of the table. "To be honest... considering the situation it is not that an outlandish opinion."

"Hey, what?" I said, giving him an incredulous look. "Oh come on! Don't tell me you're thinking stupid things like that!"

"As you said... considering what has been happening lately it is not that far-fetched an idea. Having nightmares all the time is usually something one would associate with a horrific experience of some kind, or a heavy conscience, things I assure you I do not have."

"I hope not." I said. "But you shouldn't worry about it so much. If you worry about it you're just giving yourself more things to stress about and that's not gonna help the bad dream situation I promise you."

"And the seeing things situation?" He asked, raising an eyebrow at me.

I gave a shrug. "So far you've only seen _helpful_ non-existing things. I'll start complaining when they get us in trouble." I said. This was half true, I was kinda worried about that but I was writing it down to exhaustion, not to some kind of growing insanity. At least not yet.

He gave a laugh at this and I relaxed, thankful he seemed to be feeling a little better. "That is true. I had not thought of it that way."

"Sure." I gave him a grin. "You've nothing to worry about."

"Nothing except this 'dark cloud' on our horizon." He said, looking slightly irked more than anything.

I frowned at this. "Dark cloud? What Dark cloud?"

He blinked at me. "You do not remember? The crone we saw in the woods said that there was a dark cloud in our future."

I frowned, trying to remember. "I remember she said... oh no wait _you_ said she wanted Donny. Oh yeah! It was in exchange for more details on that right?"

"Yes." He nodded, frowning lightly at me. "You honestly forgot about it?"

I gave a nod at this. "I figured she was just trying to think of a reason to get her claws on Don. I didn't put that much weight on it. But why are you still hung up about it?"

"Because I have been dreaming about it." Usagi said, surprising me.

"I thought you said you couldn't remember what you've been dreaming about." I said.

"Yes, but as it is happening more and more, I seem to be remembering more details of what I dream about. I do not really understand it, but it usually involves some-one... or rather some_thing_ warning me of this dark fortune. It is usually a creature of some kind who at first comes across as human before I discover them to be some monstrosity or another. Sometimes they are truly horrific in appearance and frightening while at other times they reveal themselves to be something... sad, or rather tragic."

I ignored the fact that Usagi refers to himself and others of his world as 'human', something I've never really understood, and focused on this creature situation instead.

"Tragic? Like what?" I tried to think of a suggestion but couldn't come up with anything.

He gave a shrug as if we were discussing nothing more than breakfast cereals. "Sometimes the person turns out to be a drowned woman, or an ill child. But regardless of what and who they are, the over-all message is the same. There is a misfortune in our future, and I need to be aware of it for it will prove to be of importance."

I frowned. "Important in what way?"

"I have no idea." He shrugged again.

I rubbed my muzzle as I thought about this. "D'you think maybe it has something to do with Nagahashi and this whole 'Underworld' scheme he's got? I mean it would make sense right? Isn't it suppose to be the land of the dead, and here you're dreaming of dead people warning you against something bad happening?"

"It could be." He nodded.

"I mean, let's face it we're all pretty stressed by what could happen." I reasoned. "So if you're as worried as I am it's probably no surprise you're having nightmares about it."

"But Leo." He said, abbreviating my name in a rather rare moment. "I have been having nightmares _before _we knew what Nagahashi's been doing."

"Yeah but those you couldn't remember." I argued back.

"But then why was I having bad dreams before?" He pressed.

I gave a sigh and sat back. "Look, I have no idea. I still say you're probably stressing over something way too much. But if you're having dreams about things going badly with Nagahashi you can relax. We're gonna do some spying tonight and try to figure out what this guy is doing and move on it, so you can chill."

"Do you plan on all of us going?" He asked, rather suddenly.

I was confused. "Of course. That's how we've been doing things so far right?"

He nodded but looked uneasy.

"Is something wrong?" I asked.

"I do not know." He said. "I am just not sure if all 5 of us moving around such a large camp is a good plan."

"We'll split up." I said, thinking this would clear things up. It didn't.

"I do not know." Usagi said again. "It feels a little risky to me. I mean it was fine when we were circling the parameter for guards, but we might need to move in closer if we are to learn anything of value. Would it not seem suspicious if some-one were to spot more than one group of people skulking around in the woods? They might think they are under attack and do something drastic. Or if one group is seen the others will obviously be inclined to come to the rescue, and that would only result in more of these samurai picking up arms. If we catch the attention of too many of them we will be outnumbered."

"So?" I gave a slight laugh. "We're always outnumbered. It's not exactly a new order of business for us." I unfolded my arms. "You're worrying too much. We'll do it just like the palace infiltration. The second trouble starts we'll all head back here, even if we're not he group in trouble. If we're being chased though we'll just have to do some winding to throw off the trail of any-one following us. I don't want this village getting in trouble for our thrill seeking."

"Oh is that what you are calling it." Usagi said with almost a groan. "But I suppose you are right."

"You're letting those nightmares get the best of you." I said with a sympathetic smile.

He nodded. "They are driving me crazy."

xxxxxxxxxxx

We spent the rest of the day discussing and re-discussing what we were planning to do that night. I brought up what Usagi had said about feeling uneasy about all of us going in a big group, mostly out of consideration. I still stuck by what I said that it was unnecessary to be so cautious but I thought I'd hear what the others had to say about it.

Although they all agreed with me that it wasn't necessary to send only two or three of us if we could just split into groups, Raph said he felt Usagi might have a point as well. I noticed he was nice enough not to turn the conversation into an excuse to get on my case for my supposed 'reckless behaviour'. I'll be honest, I had no idea what he was talking about whenever he brought it up.

But anyway, he pointed out that Usagi had some good points. He also pointed out that Usagi was more familiar with how these military camps were set up and how they worked, so if he was concerned about something we should pay attention. I was a little annoyed that I couldn't fault him on his logic.

Eventually we decided that we would all go, but apart from just splitting up we would scope out the camp one group at a time, each focusing on something specific. Once the previous group returns to the inn the next one would go out. That way there was less of a chance of some-one being spotted by some-one and we could focus on what we needed to do rather than keep our ears open for if the other group was still ok.

The first group would be Raph, Donny and Mikey. Their job was to try and judge how many men were in the camp, what sort of set-up the camp had as far as where the samurai were stationed, where the generals where stationed and where Nagahashi was located. They would also try and figure out what kind of weapons they had available to them. The next group would be me and Usagi. Our job was a little riskier. We had to try and find out what might be in the camp that Nagahashi was planning to use to open the gate, or portal or whatever you prefer to call it. It would require needing to get closer to the camp itself, possibly even sneak into it without being seen and look for anything out of the ordinary. Usagi was chosen for this because I figured, having stayed at many a military encampment during his serving under his Lord, he'd be quicker to notice something strange about a camp than me. I was going with him as a second opinion and the 'plan maker'.

We were pretty much in agreement with this plan and broke up our little meeting for whatever remained of the day. Raph said he wanted to scope out the rest of the village, pointing out that if we were using this as our makeshift home-base we should have a better idea of the area. I had to agree, all we really knew of this place so far was the inn itself and the road leading from it. We hadn't exactly checked out the rest of the village. Mikey went with him, as always. I heard him say something about trying to find something cheap to eat that was better than millet. Usagi was still looking like he'd had the life sucked out of him so, with a little coaxing from me and a tiny bit of bullying from Raph, he decided to get an hour or so's sleep before we headed towards the camp that evening.

I was planning on giving my sword some attention before we headed out. I would've liked to practice some of my katas to be honest since I was sure I was getting rusty with the lack of training. I tried to get some practice in when we were on the road or spending the night in an abandoned house or temple, but we spent so much time in these inns I didn't have as many hours as I had back home. I didn't want to make any of the villagers or innkeepers suspicious by doing combat training where they could see me. So polishing the blades were all I could really do to assure myself I was ready for any trouble that might happen.

Or at least that was the plan until Donatello cornered me.

"Hey, Leo?" I looked up from my spot on the floor. I'd just laid out some of the powders and polish I'd picked up from some store a week or so ago when I heard him slide open the door and come in.

"What's up Don?" I asked, unsheathing my sword and inspecting the blade.

"I wanted to talk to you about this plan thing we're doing tonight." He said as he closed the door behind him before sitting down in front of me.

I lifted my gaze at this. "Why? D'you think there's a problem somewhere?"

I wasn't picking a fight with him. Of all my brothers, Donny was the one I saw as my co-planner and second opinion. Raph may have been my right-hand guy when it came to missions, but when it came to the more tactical side of things, it was Donny I listened to first.

A felt something uncomfortable inside me, and only after thinking about it for a second did I realise it was guilt. Lately I'd been turning to Usagi for a second opinion, while Don was left with nothing but giving an opinion with the rest of my brothers.

Donny shook his head in response to my question. "No. I think the plan itself is probably the best idea."

I frowned when I noticed he looked a little sheepish as he spoke. "So what's the problem?"

"Well, it's not really a problem." Donny said, scratching at something on his neck. "It's more like, I wanna ask you something, but I don't really know if you'll say yes."

"What?" I asked, putting my sword down. Now I was really curious.

Don blew out a breath, as if deciding on something before looking up to meet my eyes again. "I wanna know if you'll let me go with Usagi instead, and you go with Raph and Mikey."

I didn't say 'no' right away. Usagi's and mine was the more dangerous of the two missions, but I knew if Donny had a request like this it had nothing to do with something stupid like putting himself in danger or being careless.

"Any reason why?" I asked with a level tone of voice.

I noticed Donny's cheeks darken slightly as he shifted in his seat. He seemed very self conscious.

"Well... it's kinda dumb to be honest." He said. Not really an inspiring way to start his argument. "But I kinda wanna be part of the team that does the riskier, more info-gathering type stuff."

"Why?" I asked again, frowning in confusion. This wasn't like him. "Is Mikey and Raph annoying you or something?"

He shook his head, looking irritated at this. "No, it's nothing like that." He sunk in his seat slightly. "I just want to be part of the team that did the more important stuff."

"Figuring out the strength of the camp is important too." I said, still not understanding.

He gave a slow, thoughtful nod. "Yeah but... it's obvious you're having you and Usagi do the more dangerous of the two, and you'll probably come back with information more valuable. I'd just..." He gave a sigh. "I'd like it to be me."

I stared at him. I could've asked 'why' again but felt I didn't need to. It was obvious Donny was already aware that this was weird coming from him. If it'd been Mikey or even Raph I'd understand, but Don was more level-headed.

When I didn't say anything after a few minutes Don gave an almost frustrated sigh. "Look, it's just I feel I'm not really doing much here ok? I mean I'm usually the guy doing all the techno, science, computer-hacking type things in missions like this right? Ever since we've gotten here I've really felt a little useless."

I almost laughed at this. "You cant be serious."

"Oh yeah?" He shot me a dirty look. "Name one thing we've done so far where I've been crucial to the plan."

"You were the one who figured out the place Mikey'd heard of was Izumo." I pointed out almost immediately.

Donny shook his head. "You guys would've figured it out eventually. No I mean... All of my usual skills and strengths are completely pointless here. I feel like I'm not doing anything but getting dragged along while the rest of you guys do all the worthwhile things. I mean yeah, I could've been useful in figuring out all the cultural stuff that would've been useful here in Feudal Japan, but we got Usagi with us so I can't even put my general knowledge to any use! And I know I don't suck as a fighter but I'm not good enough for that to be a major bonus to us in any way!" He slumped in his seat slightly. "It just makes me feel... kinda worthless. I just wanna contribute in some way that's more than giving a know-it-all remark."

I stared at him as he cooled down out of his rant. He wasn't looking at me and I could tell he was feeling stupid for bringing it up. I watched him for a few moments before I spoke.

"And so you think doing something macho is gonna compensate for that or something?" I sounded a little harsher than I felt, but I didn't want Donny putting himself in pointless danger because he was feeling a little bit invalidated.

He shook his head, turning to look at me. "In a way yes, but I can be useful! Look, I know Usagi's pretty much the expert here but if we find something weird in that camp I might have a better chance in knowing what it is than he does. I mean we know more about things used in portal jumping and stuff than he does right? He might know about things and tools in this world but I've got a pretty extensive knowledge of things that might be erm... otherworldly as the case may be. Plus," He rummaged inside his kimono for a few seconds before pulling out his battered note-book. "I got a way to write down whatever we find."

I tried to pull a face at him but couldn't fight off my smile. "You could always just let me borrow that."

He'd been holding it out towards me but once I said this he pulled it back with a frown. "Let you touch my stuff? No way."

I chuckled at this, shaking my head.

"C'mon Leo." He almost begged. "I'm not as helpless as you think I am. And yes, you do think so." He interrupted me before I could argue. "You worry yourself sick about all of us, you must think none of us can take care of ourselves."

'You must not have much faith in your younger brothers.' Usagi's voice said somewhere in my memory. I gave a heavy sigh at this. Don continued to stare at me with wide-eyes. I thought about it, pushing aside my initial gut reaction of worrying about everything that could go wrong.

Donny was very smart and always took a step back to analyse a situation before making a decision. Of course sometimes he'd make a very crazy decision but at least he always thought about it first. Plus he was right, he did have a larger knowledge than me about things that could be used to open portals. And Usagi would be with him if anything went wrong.

"You wanna do this to help?" I asked evenly.

He nodded. "I wanna help. I feel like I've done nothing to contribute. Please Leo."

I gave a groan, finally caving. "I'm gonna regret this..." I gave a nod. "Ok, I'll go with Mikey and Raph and you go with Usagi."

He broke out into a wide, relieved smile. "Thanks bro."

"Yeah yeah." I sighed. "Just do me a favour and don't tell Raph until we set out ok? He's been on my case enough as it is."

"You bet!" Donny said, getting up. He looked a lot more cheerful than I'd seen him in the last few days.

"And if you do anything crazy I'm gonna make you regret it." I warned in all seriousness. "And once I'm done Raph's gonna make you regret it too... before he makes _me_ regret it."

Don gave a laugh that sounded more out of relief than humour. "I promise! You know me I'll be careful."

"Yeah I know you." I said as I watched him leave. I let him decide if it was a compliment or not.

I watched his silhouette through the paper wall walk down the hall before he went down the wooden stairs. I heard him say a few things to what I assumed was the innkeeper. I sighed to myself as I pictured the kind of looks I was gonna get from Raph when the three of us went out tonight to complete our own mission. I just hoped we could keep our heads cool and not get into any loud arguments.

Besides, Donny was right. He wasn't really the type to go looking for trouble. He could throw himself into a situation sometimes but it was never an attempt to cause trouble or prove himself. I was confident that, despite his feelings, he wasn't gonna do something stupid just to make himself feel useful.

I listened to the conversation floating up from downstairs between him and innkeeper as they laughed about something, still questioning if this was the right thing to do when my conversation with Usagi this morning drifted back into my mind. I remembered him talking about the crone's prediction and bad fortunes and dark clouds being in our future.

I picked up my swords and quickly started to polish them, forcing my mind to focus on other things.

**Xxxxx**

_Please R&R_


	32. A Dark Cloud

_I don't own TMNT or UY._

_I rather liked this chapter, I hope you agree. Also, once again I have never been in a Japanese war-camp so please forgive my inaccuracy, I couldn't find proper reference online._

**Xxxxx **

I still couldn't believe Leo agreed to letting me go with Usagi instead! But I wasn't gonna argue. I felt a little stupid admitting to him how I was feeling since even I knew it sounded more like a little kid complaining than some-one who made decisions based on logic and reason, but I guess it helped Leo understand why I was asking for something so weird. Either way, it got me to do something I felt was a little more worthwhile.

I kept my promise and didn't mention it to Raph, although I probably would've kept my mouth shut even if Leo hadn't asked me. I was totally with Leo on this, Raph was really busting his chops lately. I'd hate to see what he'd say about Leo making last-minute changes to the plan for apparently no reason. I wasn't sure whether to be insulted. Both Leo and Raph were acting as if I was some little kid that needed to be babysat because he couldn't be trusted by himself. Like I'd be sticking forks into power-sockets or something. I wasn't too angry about it though. I knew they were coming from a good place and it wasn't suppose to indicate how much faith they had in me.

But I was glad Leo said yes. If he'd said no I would've been disappointed but I would've understood, but just for him to show that he not only felt I could do this but also that he understood my feelings made me feel a lot better. I was hellbent on doing a good job!

I was gonna make sure we came back with something useful! After this mission we were gonna be ready to make our move and stop all of this! I was going to make it my personal mission to make sure we find out exactly what Nagahashi was going to use to open the portal, when he was planning to do it and if I could, where he was planning to do it. With Usagi with me we should be able to figure out where Nagahashi's personal quarters are and we could maybe find a map or something of the like.

I was excited.

When evening finally came around and it was time for Mikey, Raph and Leo to go out things got a little loud for a few minutes when Raph found out I was going with Usagi instead. He was angry that Leo kept making decisions without telling any-one about them but I was really relieved that he seemed more annoyed by Leo's lack of communication than me doing something potentially stupid. It made me feel better that at least that not _every-one_ thought I was completely helpless.

He and Leo grumbled at each other for a while but eventually they left, running out into the snow-covered landscape in the direction of the woods. The sun was just about setting behind the mountains, making the village a series of cool blues and greys while the winter sky burnt a cold yellow.

I watched them go from the inn's doorway. I felt anxious for some reason. I tried to tell myself it was just nervousness, not wanting to invite any jinxes into this plan. The idea was that they'd go out, try and judge the size and power of this army, and would be back in about 3 hours or so which is when Usagi and I would go when it was darker and gave us better cover so we could get closer to the camp than they could. I wasn't really sure how much fun it was gonna be sitting around for 3 hours hoping they all came back ok. I suddenly wished I had a pack of cards or something. At least then Usagi and I could do something while we waited.

I sighed, going back inside and closing the door against the chill. Usagi was sitting at one of the tables, watching me as I came over to join him.

"You seem rather worried." He said.

I gave a light shrug. "I'm just hoping this all goes smoothly that's all."

"It will be fine if we keep our wits about us." Usagi said.

"Sounds like good advice." The innkeeper said as he placed some cups and a teapot on the table, causing me to jump rather badly. I hadn't noticed him there.

Usagi gave him a grateful smile, but I wasn't so quick to write that statement off.

"You don't know what they're planning on doing." I grumbled, pulling my cup closer to pour myself some tea. "Do you?"

The innkeeper gave me a nonchalant shrug. "I don't, but then you 5 have been doing strange things since you got here and so far no trouble has come of it. I don't see why things should be different this time."

I gave him a pointed look as I sipped from my cup. "You wouldn't say that if you knew."

"If it's all the same I'd rather not know." He said, straightening and giving us a slight bow. "If it doesn't put my home in danger I don't mind odd behaviour, but I'd rather not get involved."

"Wise words." Usagi said, pouring himself some tea as well.

"You'll be happier for it." I agreed. The innkeeper gave a slight laugh at this.

"I take it you're going to be doing whatever it is you're doing well into the night again." He said.

Usagi nodded. "We thank you for your tolerance."

The innkeeper smiled and gave a friendly shrug as he turned to leave the room. "Like I said, as long as it doesn't affect me I see no reason to be upset. But I will be turning in for the night if you do not need me."

"Yeah. Sleep well." I said half-heartedly as he left.

"_Oyasumi._" Usagi echoed, focusing on his tea.

After the innkeeper left, me and Usagi found ourselves with little to talk about as we waited for the others to come back. That was fine, I didn't really feel like filling up the silence with pointless small-talk. Instead, I pulled out my notebook again, paging through it to see how many empty pages were left. There were about 6 at the back of the book. Not that many but enough for what we were planning to do tonight anyway.

"Your book is backwards." Usagi suddenly said.

I looked up at him, confused. I looked down at my notebook again, turning it upside-down and flipping to somewhere I'd written to see if I'd gotten it the wrong way around. I looked up to frown at him.

"No it isn't."

"Well, then you have written in it backwards." He said, eyeing the thicker side of the pages in my hands.

I realised what he was saying and shook my head. "It's left to write."

"Yes. Backwards." He said.

I shook my head again, starting to feel frustrated. "No, That's the right way around. I wrote it in English so I wrote it from left to right."

He blinked at me. "...why?"

"Because." I said rather tersely.

He shrugged and turned back to his tea and we fell into silence again.

It seemed like days had passed before the door was opened and Leo, Raph and Mikey came back into the building. They were shivering slightly but other than that didn't seem any worse for wear.

"_Okaeri."_ Usagi welcomed them back.

"Any trouble?" I asked, getting up to get closer and give them each a quick glance to make sure they weren't hurt.

"Nope." Raph said, rubbing his arms. "It's fricken' freezin' out there though!"

"Dude! The place is huge!" Mikey interrupted. "Seriously! There's gotta be like a million people there or something! This Lord guy ain't playing around!"

"It's more like a thousand give or take." Leo said. "Not exactly big by army standards but big enough to give us problems that's for sure."

"Did you see Nagahashi himself?" Usagi asked. I realised after he said it that we had no idea what the Lord who was causing all our problems even looked like.

"Nothing to really fit the description of a lord no." Leo said. "But then I can't tell all the finer details between a general's armour and a Lord's armour, so we might've seen him and not realised it."

"That's what you need me for." I smiled eagerly. Raph grumbled something but decided to not start anything.

"Right." Leo nodded, moving to sit down at a table. "We'll give you a quick crash course on the layout of the place before you go."

"Sounds like a good idea." Usagi nodded.

"Did you see anything that'd be used to open a portal?" I asked, not really sure what I had in mind. My imagination was running away from me a little, picturing strange, drilling machines in the middle of the camp or something like that.

Leo shook his head. "No, nothing. So we'll be counting on you two to try and find something out."

"You bet!" I said with a smile.

"Just don't do anythin' stupid." Raph grumbled at me. "Ya ain't gonna be helpin' nobody if ya get killed."

"I'm so glad you have so much faith in me Raph." I said irritably. Raph just rolled his eyes at me.

xxxxxxxxxxx

It really was cold outside. The fact that the sun had properly set didn't help matters. Usually just after the sun set there'd still be some heat coming from the earth after the day's sunshine, but the thick layer of snow on the ground and the weakness of the sun itself meant that the second it became dark the temperature plummet lower than it already was. It's the kind of weather where you'd like nothing better than to curl up under a blanket and stay there.

Usagi and I made good time heading for the camp. We took a different path than the other three, not wanting a clear, easy-to-follow trail to form from the camp to our inn. I found myself for the first time hoping it'd snow tonight. It would cover our tracks and discourage some-one following us if we're spotted. The sky above us seemed overcast so maybe we'd luck out. I couldn't see any stars or even the moon. It would've been easier to tell if we were back in our modern day city. An over-cast sky glowed bright orange back in New York, making it almost unnecessary to carry anything like a flashlight if you went out where there weren't any streetlights. Here it was mostly guess work that told me we might have some cloud coverage above us somewhere.

If it does snow, I hope it does so _after_ we get back.

"_Matte!_" Usagi suddenly hissed in front of me, grinding to a halt and dropping to his knees. He had his gaze fixed to something ahead of us.

"What?" I whispered urgently, following his lead and trying to see what he'd spotted.

"Guard." He whispered back, giving a quick indication with his hand.

I didn't say anything in response. I frowned at where he'd pointed but I couldn't see anything. I decided asking him if he was sure was probably not a good idea though. The last thing I wanted to do was give away our position only to find an arrow heading our way.

I could almost physically hear the seconds tick by before Usagi rose to his feet very, very slowly. He kept his eyes fixed on the invisible guard as he waved a hand at me, motioning for me to follow. I copied him, staying close as we started moving to the side, away from the threat ahead of us. We moved slowly, treading softly as we made a wide-arc around wherever the guy was before we sped up our walk again. Once we were in the clear I turned to look behind me, hoping to see this guard. I could see nothing but dark black pillars shooting out of the snow and throwing twisted branches above us and misshapen blobs of prickly thorns and twigs in large groups. Somewhere, between the heavily organic scenery I thought I saw a metallic looking glint but in the poor light it was impossible to be sure. Eventually I just put faith in Usagi's eyes and turned my back to it, carrying on our way.

If we're seeing guards, we must be close.

We kept going, and after what felt like a long, twisting journey through limbo a yellow and red glow could be seen through the trees ahead of us and I could smell the unmistakable scent of burning wild-wood. It smelt different to the rather boring smell of charcoal or even chopped firewood. It smelled more acrid and wet. As we got closer the hushed sounds of voices could be heard. A few pockets of conversations from different points ahead of us, but not as many to indicate the numbers Leo had mentioned. Every-one must be getting sleep apart from those either on guard or merely unable to get rest.

My heart was starting to speed up as we got closer. Our progress slowed and we started hugging the ground a little closer, sticking close to trees and the dry, thick bushes making up the forest. Once we felt we were close enough to get a good idea of what the camp looked like without pushing our luck too far we stopped, hunching down behind a large series of bushes, some of which still supported thick, dark-green leaves while others looked more like bird's nests.

In front of us lay Lord Nagahashi's camp. He'd set his men on a clearing with trees on 3 sides and rocks separating it from the shore on the other. The clearing was irregular in shape, forcing the camp to take on a shape that didn't resemble anything of basic structure. More specifically, the men had taken up camp wherever they could find a bare patch of ground. The snow had been cleared properly from the ground by so many feet and the burning campfires which dotted the scene and gave it that eerie, reddish glow. Around every fire a large collection of men had gathered to try and keep warm. Of course there wasn't enough space around each fire for every-one, and so most of the ground was carpeted by sleeping figures who had to come up with other inventive ways to keep warm. Whether it was by wearing all their armour at once or if it was trying to find heat from a fellow samurai in a way that wouldn't get any subtext from the rest of the men.

The ground that wasn't taken up by men either sleeping or idly talking amongst themselves was taken up by an uncountable number of lances and the long rectangular banners and flags bored into the ground for quick access. Although I guess these men should be labelled 'our enemy' I couldn't help but feel bad for them, having to stay in the open in this frigid air. I had no idea what they would do if a storm broke out. Would they move to the town the innkeeper talked about for shelter? Would the town even be big enough to _give_ all of them shelter? I thought back to a few days ago when we'd broken into the palace and we'd had that blizzard. I wondered what on earth had happened here that night. The logical side of me pointed out that lives must have been lost purely due to exposure, causing my more emotional side to shudder.

I became aware of a stone-like frown growing on my face as I looked over the scene, trying to see if I could spot Lord Nagahashi among all these people. Was he exposing himself to the elements like he was forcing his men to? I doubted it, and I wanted to see him taking shelter so I could feel justifiably angry. I wasn't disappointed either when I saw what looked like a very tall fence made of long poles and fabric sectioning off a large rectangle close to the rocks. There were similar, smaller walls on the left and right of it but the large one in the middle was the one holding my attention.

From our vantage point we could half-see over it and inside the enclosed area. There were torches on poles at each corner and guards standing vigil at what I guess were the doors. Inside I could see men in armour much grander than that of the soldiers thrown all around the clearing, as well as 2 very large tents made of white fabric. My guess was our lord was inside one of them, safe from the freezing wind. I grumbled to myself at the injustice as I adjusted my own kimono around myself with a slight shiver.

"That is odd." Usagi whispered, frowning lightly. He pointed slightly at the two white tents I'd just been staring at. "Normally one would be enough. It is rare to see two of them like that."

"Maybe he _needs_ two." I said with a heavy dose of sarcasm. It was the kind of arrogant move I could very easily imagine coming from a person in power.

Usagi shook his head although I didn't think it was because he didn't understand my sarcasm. He seemed to be thinking it over.

"We will need to get closer if we are to learn anything of use, but Nagahashi does not seem to be as big a fool as we thought. He has positioned his personal encampment against the rock-face where one can not sneak up on him from behind."

"Well we can't exactly just wander through this crowd until we reach his little war-camp." I hissed, eyeing the sea of armed soldiers in front of us.

Usagi gave an aggravated sigh, running a hand over his head. "Ok, let us not get discouraged." He lowered his hands again and looked over the scene with a slight squint in a way I recognized from living with Leo as an 'assessing the situation' expression.

"As I see it." He said after a few minutes. "We have 3 things we need to find out right now. Firstly, when is Nagahashi planning to move. Secondly, what he is planning on doing to open the gate and third, where he is planning on doing it."

I nodded, glad to have some kind of direction. "Well, let's see." I said, mulling this over. "When Nagahashi is planning to move could either be easy or hard depending on the situation right now. If he's planning on acting soon the samurai should know when they're expected to move and we could try and find that out from one of these little campfire discussions here. However if he's not planning on moving any time soon he wouldn't have told his men. As for how and where though, we're gonna need some-one with a little bit more authority to find that out."

"And for that we will need to focus on the mostly likely place where information of the kind will be." Usagi said with an exhale. "Which brings us back around to our initial problem of infiltrating his personal encampment."

I gave a sigh myself with a nod. This wasn't a very promising start to our mission. I almost started to wish Leo was here with a plan but immediately quelched that line of thought. I could do this. I didn't need my big brother to bail me out.

"Ok." I said instead, running the facts over in my head again. "So, we need to get into that encampment over there, but we can't because there are too many men between us and it from here, and we can't sneak up on it from behind with those rocks shielding it, at least not without being seen."

Usagi nodded, sitting back on his haunches as he watched me, waiting to hear where my train of thought was taking me. To be honest I would've liked to know as well, but kept moving forward, hoping the idea would form itself as I spoke.

"So erm... let's look at our strengths." I suggested. That was always a good start when me and Leo went over infiltration plans together. Granted we didn't really make up plans of that kind right on the spot. "You know the layout of camps of this kind pretty well and you know how the chain of command and everything should work in them. I..." I faltered. I was the brainy brother but... I couldn't think of any strength I could put on the table that Usagi didn't have.

"You are _shinobi_." Usagi said. "Therefore you have the skill of stealth as well as an agility I do not."

I blinked at him for a moment. With my brothers, being a ninja was about as big an advantage as being a boy was. But with Usagi, I realised, this gave me a large advantage he didn't have. I gave a nod. "Right."

Usagi turned back to Nagahashi's personal quarters, looking it over again.

"Could you scale those rocks?" He asked, nodding to them slightly.

I turned and looked them over myself. They were little more than black blobs in the poor light but by their size and silhouette they looked craggy and large enough to be able to climb. Whether I could do it stealthily was another matter.

"I dunno if I could climb down without being seen." I admitted. "But I could give it a shot."

"You would have a better chance than me." Usagi said. "But if you feel it is too risky perhaps we should try and think of something else."

"Like what exactly?" I said, giving him a pointed look. "Let's face it. It's either scale those rocks or try fight our way through his entire army."

Usagi pulled a grim face but nodded. "I agree."

We got to our feet again and, making a wide circle around the edge of the camp, moved closer to where the trees met the large rock outcrop. Once we were close enough we hunched down again, the white make-shift wall in front of us. Several idle samurai separated us from simply jumping over it. I eyed the large men guarding the outside of it, knowing full well there would be guards just as vigilant on the inside.

"I can't do this." I said under my breath to Usagi. "They will see me for sure."

"Then perhaps you need a distraction." He whispered back.

"Like what?" I said a little urgently. "Set the forest on fire? Because that's about all I can think of that'd get their attention."

"There is no need to be so bombastic about it." Usagi said. "There are more subtle ways to distract them."

"Oh? Like what?" I said.

"Hold on a moment." Usagi said with a slight frown, scanning the area closest to us. I frowned at him. I had no idea what he was looking for.

Whatever it was, he seemed to find it and he gave my shoulder a hard pat as he got to his feet quickly. "Stay here."

"Where are you going?" I hissed after him as he hurried off in a direction, his eyes locked on something in the clearing in front of us.

"Seriously. Stay there." He whispered back to me.

I kept my mouth shut as I watched him disappear into the dark. I had no idea what he was planning but I decided to follow his instructions. I just prayed he knew what he was doing. I stayed crouched, my eyes glued on the spot where he disappeared as I waited, listening for any sounds of trouble. After a few minutes I realised I was chewing on my lip anxiously. So far there hadn't been anything to suggest a distraction of any kind. When a sudden wind picked up I jumped as the dry bushes around me started to rustle and I could hear the sound of stressed branches above me.

I waited.

A sound rang out over the rustling of the forest around me and it made my blood freeze. It sounded like a surprised yelp that was very abruptly cut off, causing an unrecognizable noise but one that was without a doubt 'human', for lack of a better word. I took two sharp breaths through my teeth and was about to leap forward and sprint in the direction of the sound when the figure of Usagi appeared in front of me out of the darkness. He grabbed my arm and gave it an urgent tug.

"Come on come on! We must move!" He whispered. He didn't sound anxious. Excited would be a better word.

"What was that noise?" I asked as I got to my feet and followed him as we started making a B-line for where the rocks melded into the trees.

"I will tell you later! But right now you need to go!" He said, coming to a stop once we reached the rocks.

"But are you ok?" I asked, still concerned as I took hold of the tree closest to me, looking over my shoulder at him as I prepared to climb up it.

"Yes, Never better! Now go!" He said, almost physically pushing me up the tree.

I took his word for it and hurriedly clambered up into the tree's branches. Below me I saw Usagi give the clearing a quick glance before ducking deeper into the forest, out of sight. I turned my focus back on getting onto the outcrop as I climbed through the bare branches. I found a good spot where I could get a foot-hold on the rock and lowered myself onto it. From there I climbed further upwards and forwards on all fours along the top of it. I reached the point where the branches above me thinned out and I would have to climb out onto the rocks and be completely exposed. Below me however, I could see a commotion had broken out. Most of the samurai around the corner near where we had been hiding seemed to suddenly be alert and a few of them had gotten to their feet and were walking towards the trees. For a second I thought they'd found Usagi, but I fought down this fear with the argument that, if they had found him, Usagi would not be one to be caught easily and there would be a lot more yelling involved.

I took the cue and kept going along the top of the rocks, making use of their distraction and hoping no-one would notice me. I reached the point where I was just above the largest walled off area. Here I squatted down and waited, looking over the small secluded area below me. The guards were still keeping their vigil but it was obvious the commotion outside was catching their attention. Two of them on the outside of the wall left their posts to investigate. The others stayed but were craning their necks to see what was going on. I waited, hoping I would get a good opening to climb down without being seen.

I saw a samurai running towards the guards still on duty and saw some hurried words being exchanged. The guard turned and pushed aside a stretch of fabric, entering the enclosure and making his way hurriedly to one of the large tents, closer to where I sat still hoping I was hidden. I leaned a little lower, trying to hear what Usagi had done to cause a ripple in the camp like this.

"Lord Nagahashi." I could hear the guard say from inside the tent. "Forgive me sir but there's a disturbance among the men."

"What is it?" I heard a voice say. It sounded grounded, calm and slightly concerned. This offended me as I had been picturing the man as some kind of bellowing, commanding bully. He sounded... normal.

"Something strange has happened Dono. One of the lance-men went into the forest to relieve himself. The men sharing his campfire said they heard him cry out and when they went to investigate they found him dead." The guard said. The report was calm and frank. He seemed unmoved by this turn of events.

"He just dropped dead?" The voice I had grudgingly decided must belong to Nagahashi said.

"No Dono. He appears to have been murdered. The cut seems to have been made by a katana but there isn't any trace of the attacker." The guard's voice said.

"Are the woods being searched?" Nagahashi asked. I could hear the concern grow in his voice.

"Yes Dono, but so far we haven't found anything." The guard said.

"Hmmm." I heard Nagahashi muse. "Why would a single swordsman try and attack some-one mere feet away from an entire army?"

"Dono..." The guard said, he sounded like something was on his mind. "...Forgive me but I think your presence might be required. The men are skittish as it is and some are whispering about _obake_ being in the woods."

"Oh that's nonsense." Nagahashi's voice said.

There was a pause before I saw the tent below me open again and out stepped Nagahashi himself, walking to leave the enclosed area. His appearance was as irritating as his voice. From where I sat he looked a little bit taller than Usagi was. He had a topknot tied on his head and two small, sharp rectangular ears. His face was long, with dark, sharp eyes and a thin moustache. He had a lean but muscular build, nowhere nearly as solid as Raph but he looked more developed than Usagi. I would say he had more or less the same build as me if it wasn't so obvious that he was older than me by more than a few years. He wore a dark-coloured kimono with a thicker winter-coat over it. It was embroidered with an intricate and obviously expensive design.

As he left the enclosure the guard followed him before taking his post outside the wall again. However, much to my relief, the two guards on the inside of the walls followed the Lord, leaving the area guarded from the outside, but not from the inside.

I waited until I was sure they were out of sight before I got a hand-hold and climbed down the rock-face. As soon as I was able to I dropped down to the ground and immediately ducked behind one of the tents, making sure no-one heard me. When there was no sound of any-one coming closer I stepped out from my cover and rounded the tent, immediately making for the one I just saw Nagahashi step out of. If I'm gonna learn anything, it would be in there.

Inside was pretty much what I expected from a makeshift war-tent. There was a futon on the floor with an expensive looking blanket draped over it and a lantern burning next to it. In the middle of the tent was a large table, ontop of which lay several rolled up scrolls. There was also a sword stand, currently standing empty, as well as a handful of other weapons placed where they would be within close reach. I also spotted a small, decorative chest standing close to the futon as well as various other things. I didn't pay too much attention to them as I made straight for the scrolls on the table. I grabbed the one closest to me and unrolled it, looking it over. It was covered with kanji, written small and neat along with some rather lavish ink drawings of strange and twisted creatures. A quick scan of the words told me it was a more detailed retelling of the story Usagi had already told us about Izanagi and his sealing of the gate to the Underworld. I rolled it back up and put it down.

The next scroll looked like something of a census. It had a record of how many men were in the camp and how many of them were signed to each division. I would've liked to write this information down but time was of the essence so I merely tried to memorize the numbers before rolling the scroll up and going to the next one. The next scroll proved a lot more useful. It was a stylized map of what I guessed was the area. I hurried pulled out my notebook and, as fast as I could, drew a very basic diagram of what was in front of me, marking the two settlements on the map which I guessed were the town we were staying in and the larger one further to the west. I also copied where an X had been drawn, roughly between the two towns. My guess was it was the camp. I then noticed a symbol drawn against what appeared to be a mountain right next to the ocean. The symbol looked like a Torii. Usually this would symbolise a temple but my gut told me otherwise. Firstly, our innkeeper hadn't mentioned anything about temples being in the area and secondly, my general knowledge was telling me the symbol wasn't representing anything religious as such. In Shintoism, the red Toriis of Japan were meant to signify a doorway to another world. Stepping through it was meant to be symbolic of stepping into an area more mindful of the spirit realm which is why they tend to be found in front of Shinto temples.

I copied the location of the Torii into my notebook and circled it several times. I then rolled the scroll up again and checked the last remaining scroll, wanting to be thorough. It turned out to be another scroll more associated with a legend. This one seemed to be telling a story of some kind and at first I couldn't figure out its significance until I realised that the hero in the tale has a dream about the underworld which is described quite vividly. No doubt Nagahashi thought it'd be useful to plan his invasion. I rolled it up again as I put away my notebook. I gave the tent another quick once-over. When I was sure I hadn't missed anything I left.

I was extremely pleased by how things were going so far. I couldn't have been in the tent for more than 5 minutes. I was about to grab hold of the rock again and climb back up when I stopped to stare at the second tent. Usagi had said it was strange for there to be more than one of them, I felt I had see what was inside it, it could be important.

I ignored the mental image of Leo scolding me as I hurried towards it. I pushed aside the curtain-like door and stepped inside, looking around to make sure no-one was going to ambush me once I did so. The tent was empty of people however and I relaxed a little. It was filled by barrels. This confused me for more than one reason. First of all, why would you have a large tent full of barrels brought to a camp like this? For that I could still come up with rational reasons though, like food or water. What confused me more was why would Lord Nagahashi be keeping them so close? They had to be important. But what confused me the most was the fact that feudal Japan did not in fact use metal-ringed barrels. They did have something _like_ that but their barrels had a very distinct design whereas these seemed European in nature. I would've bet my shell on it.

Feeling strangely proud of myself for noticing this I stepped closer to one, wanting to see what was inside it. I doubted Leo would've noticed their design if it had been him doing this mission instead of me. The top of the barrel was sealed with a wooden sphere. It took some effort and a bit of swearing but I eventually managed to open it and look inside.

My first thought as to what it was was immediately dismissed as I couldn't believe the barrel could be filled by something like that. I then thought it was maybe some kind of powdered chalk before I dipped a finger in it and realised my first impression was right. It was gunpowder.

I shook the black powder from my hand and looked up from the open barrel... to the other 20 or so identical barrels in the tent.

"Oh crap." I swore to myself, realising I probably just found out how Nagahashi was planning on opening his gate. To put it bluntly, he was gonna use force.

I sloppily closed the barrel in front of me again before I quickly left the tent, heading back to the rock-face as fast as I could and starting to climb to the top again, my brain reeling at what I'd just found. I'd climbed about half-way up before I realised that I hadn't found out when Nagahashi was planning to move, but decided I couldn't go back now. I'd be pushing my luck too much. I got to the top of the outcrop without being seen and pretty much ran the length of it until I reached the trees again. As soon as I was close enough I leapt to the nearest branch and climbed down to the ground.

Once I felt my feet touch snow again I looked around, trying to spot Usagi. I hadn't heard anything that would suggest he'd been found so I knew he had to be hiding somewhere in the woods. I didn't dare call him. I chewed on my lip for the second time that evening as I tried to decide whether to move away from the rocks to try and look for him. The first rule of being paired with a partner is 'make sure you're partner is ok.' I was not about to head back to the inn and hope he'd done the same.

I heard some-one push through the underbrush a little uncomfortably close to me and decided it wasn't gonna help Usagi if I got caught. I hid myself among the bushes near a large fallen tree, waiting to hear if the person was coming my way or not.

"Hey." a voice whispered next to me, causing me to almost give a loud yelp.

I snapped my head around and was relieved beyond words when I saw the salmon coloured eyes stare back at me, giving me a hopeful smile.

"Did you find anything?"

"You nearly gave me a heart-attack!" I complained in a hushed whisper. "But yes, I found more than enough useful information."

"Well I hope so." Usagi said, "Because I over-heard some of the samurai talking to each other and Nagahashi is planning on moving tomorrow evening."

"Damn." I breathed out, mostly with concern about this but also slightly in relief. I was glad Usagi had managed to find the missing piece to the puzzle I hadn't.

"I suggest we leave." Usagi said, giving the area in front of us a once-over. Whoever had been walking towards us had disappeared. "I am afraid my diversion may have taken the attention away from you but it has caused these woods to fill up with samurai looking for me."

"We'll just have to work around that." I said, climbing out from the bushes and pulling him out as well. "But let's not stick around here any longer. We don't want to make their jobs _easy_ for them."

"Agreed." Usagi nodded as he turned and we immediately started retracing our steps back the way we'd come.

"Did you really kill somebody?" I asked as we went. I'd been ignoring the fact up until now but I couldn't keep my mind off it any longer.

"If he had seen us he would have killed us." Usagi said back. It was a justification.

I frowned to myself. "But you _did_ kill some-one as a decoy."

"Did you not say the other option was setting the entire forest on fire?" He said, sounding slightly irritated.

I groaned. "Couldn't you have thought of something else?"

"I did not particularly want to sit around and think of another option while giving them all the opportunity in the world to find us." He said back.

"Yeah but..." I swallowed. "...Isn't that a little harsh?"

"You are too gentle for your own good Donatello-san." Usagi said. "I find it surprising coming from a _shinobi_, a warrior trained for the sole purpose of being an assassin."

"That's not what I am." I nearly growled at him.

"Perhaps not, but that is what you have been trained to b-" He slammed on the breaks, causing me to nearly fall ontop of him.

He made a strangled noise, dove to the right and broke into a sprint. I found myself instinctively running after him. Eventually my brain caught up with me and I realised I could hear loud, alarmed calls from the place which only a few moments ago had been in front of us. We'd walked right into one of the samurai sent looking for us.

"Dammit!" I cursed. "I should've heard him! We walked right _into_ him!"

"It does not matter! Just run!" Usagi called. He was already a good few strides ahead of me, being faster than I was.

I sped up, trying to keep up with him. Behind me I could hear more and more voices call out to each other. I heard some of them yell out our location as the samurai spread out through the forest tracked us as we ran. I could make out running footsteps somewhere behind us. They were close, but their owners were invisible between the dark trees and twisted bushes. All I knew was we needed to keep running. As if to affirm my thoughts I heard the unmistakable 'thwok' of something burying itself in a tree just as I streaked past it.

"They've got archers following us!" I called to Usagi.

Usagi didn't call back a reply but I didn't care. As long as he'd heard me.

A sound tore through the night air, causing my heart to shoot up into my throat. After I regained my balance from my shocked stumble I could feel my ears ringing with the sudden, vacuum like silence that followed it.

"What the heck was that?" I cried out.

"_Teppo _fire!" Usagi called back. He sounded out of breath.

My throat tied a knot in itself at this. I turned to look over my shoulder for only a second. Somewhere in the dark of the forest behind us I could see two or three red glowing spots, like lit cigarettes.

'It's ok.' I tried to calm myself down as I sped up. 'It's pitch dark and we're weaving inbetween the trees. It's impossible to hit us. A rifle isn't any more accurate than an arrow. They won't hit us.'

The cries and yells that had followed us for the first few seconds had grown distant as I realised we were putting some ground between us and our perusers. This calmed my rising panic. 'I told you.' I said to myself. 'It's dark, and we're hidden by the trees. They can't even follow us.'

I could feel my chest start to burn but I didn't slow down. I wasn't gonna stop unless we find some kind of hiding place and until we put enough distance between us and them that wasn't gonna happen. Ducking for cover too soon could prove more lethal than running out of breath. I tried to ignore my burning lungs and focused instead on Usagi's back as he ran ahead of me. The cries and yells had fallen almost silent by now and I couldn't hear any footsteps running after us any more. There were no more arrows either and I started to calm down slightly, hoping we'd managed to lose them.

I turned to look over my shoulder again but I couldn't spot the glowing light of lit fuses behind us any more. I gave a dry laugh as I turned back to the front.

"Hey!" I called. "Hey I think we lost 'em!"

As if to mock me, another gunshot cracked the air, turning my optimism completely upside down.

Knowing what the sound was this time caused the years and years of training Master Splinter had drilled into my head to take over. Gunshots meant danger. They weren't like Foot-soldiers you could fight down. The only counter was to avoid getting struck. I threw myself to the ground. A short distance ahead of me I saw Usagi do the same.

I heaved with a few short, frozen breaths, listening to hear if any more shots were coming. I couldn't hear any running footsteps coming towards us and no third shot followed the second. I risked turning my head but I couldn't see anything behind us. I could hear the faint echoes of voices who were clearly yelling to each other but they sounded much further away than anywhere near enough to see us. But they were still looking for us.

Something had been kicking me in the back of the head for the past 2 minutes and when I calmed down enough it finally got my attention.

'It's the 1600s!' my brain yelled at me. 'They're using matchlock rifles! They'll need to reload! They can't hit you until they reload! You need to get away _now!_'

I obeyed the inner voice. We'd managed to throw off the swordsman, now was our chance to do the same with the riflemen while they were preoccupied with reloading their guns and refilling them with gunpowder.

I sprang to my feet.

Usagi didn't.

**Xxxxx **

_Ok, lots of Random Japanese words in this chapter so here goes (please let me know if I've gotten any of these wrong. Japanese is not my first language... or even my second. ) :_

_Oyasumi – Goodnight._

_Okaeri – Welcome home_

_Matte – wait, stop etc._

_Shinobi – a ninja, assassin etc._

_Obake – ugh... this is a tough one. Basically 'haunts' which includes monsters, ghosts, spirits etc._

_Dono – an honorific along the lines of 'My Lord'. It is a higher form of respect than -sama_

_Torii – Those large red gate-like structures you see on anything to do with Japan._

_Teppo – A matchlock rifle. Imported into Japan mainly by the Portuguese. It uses a fuse which needs to be lit in order to fire as well as a lead bullet and gunpowder. They are roughly the same length and size as a modern hunting rifle if not a little shorter. _

_GAH! That's everything I hope X( Please R&R and I hope you guys are enjoying still enjoying it. I get practically no feedback but I know you guys are out there. Thank you for continuing to read this rather drawn out story *heart*_


	33. The Consequences of Being Reckless

_I don't own TMNT or UY._

_I was so happy to hear this story has been nominated for the Stealthy Stories' annual fanfic awards! Even though it isn't finished yet and not as good as I'd have liked I am very moved, and it's helped build my confidence a little to keep going. Thank you for whoever nominated me! xx_

**Xxxxx**

I watched Leo as he restlessly paced back and forth in front of us. He had his arms crossed behind his back and was glaring at the floor like it'd said something offensive to him. Raph was ignoring him, sitting back in his chair with his arms crossed behind his head, staring at the ceiling. Or he would've been if his eyes weren't closed. I gave a yawn before I groaned and leaned my head onto my arms on top of the table.

Leo stopped his pacing for a few minutes, making me look up again. He was staring at the door to the inn. After a few minutes though he went back to pacing and I buried my face in my arms again.

"They should've been back by now." Leo said for like the hundredth time.

"Did ya want them to do their mission thing fast or do it properly?" I grumbled, raising my eyes just enough to stare over my arms at him.

Leo shook his head with a worried growl but didn't answer.

"They probably found somethin' and are checkin' it out properly before headin' back." Raph said to the ceiling.

"Or they may have been caught." Leo said with a grumble.

"Gee. That makes me feel loads better Leo. Thanks." I said with a frown.

"You're kinda cranky ain't ya?" Raph said, turning to look at me.

"I'm tired." I complained, leaning on my chin. "Can I go to bed and you guys wake me when they get back?"

"No." Raph said bluntly. Probably so Leo wouldn't have to.

I made a disappointed noise to myself but didn't argue further. I didn't have the energy. I probably wouldn't have been so tired if I'd slept a little better the night before, but I'd been worried about this camp and had a hard time getting to sleep. In hindsight it was really stupid of me. I dunno what I was expecting this camp to look like but I'd pictured it a lot more messed up and creepy than it was. And now, instead of getting some sleep and feeling better that we were just dealing with regular guys with regular weapons I had to stay up waiting for Donny and Usagi to come home. They were taking their damn time! What, did they get lost or something? It's times like this where you realise how much you missed things like coffee. Or in my case since I hated the stuff, how much you missed things like Mountain Dew.

Leo gave another frustrated noise, turning to look at the door again. "Something's happened. I just know it."

"Would ya relax?" Raph said, giving Leo a slight frown. "They're fine. Usagi's probably better at swinging those butter-knives than you are and Donny's got more brains than all of us put tagether. Have a little faith will ya?"

Leo gave another noise at this, but I could see from his face that he was trying to believe Raph.

I sighed and stood up, afraid of falling asleep and getting a whap on the back of my head from Raph. I stepped past the pacing Leo and went to lean against the door-frame. I opened up the door and peered out. The breeze that blew in felt so cold it was almost physical and I shivered badly. The weather seemed ok though despite the freezing air. I stared out through the falling flakes at the empty landscape. The light reflecting off the snow made it so I could see much further than I would've been able to in pitch darkness. I sighed to myself, realising that I was starting to worry too.

"Mikey, close tha door it's freezin'." Raph moaned from somewhere behind me.

"Sure." I said dully.

I was about to do so when I realised what I'd been looking at and looked out again.

"Hey, it's snowing." I said, blinking.

"What?" Raph sat up, frowning at me.

"Not a lot, but it _is_ snowing." I said, looking over my shoulder at him.

"That's it. I'm gonna go look for them." Leo said, walking towards he door with purpose.

I skitted out of the way, not wanting to stand between him and what he was planning to do.

"Oh big shock, ya wanna go lookin' for 'em the second there's a light drizzle." Raph said, getting up from his bench.

Leo stopped and spun around to face him. "Look Raph, I'm really not in the mood to listen to your crap right now!"

"Hey! Geez! Defensive!" Raph said, frowning hard at him but holding his hands up. "I'm just sayin', why you gotta be all freakin' out like this?"

"Raph I am _worried_ ok?" Leo said, tensing his hands at Raph as he threw his arms out. "I didn't want Donny to go out there doing crazy things to _begin_ with! Now he and Usagi are late! Do you understand why I am maybe a little bit concerned?"

"If you didn't want Don goin' out there why'd ya change the plan?" Raph snapped back. His voice was on the little verge Raph had, right before a shouting match started.

"Because he asked me to!" Leo retorted.

Raph seemed honestly surprised by this and lowered the volume a little. "What? Why? That ain't like him."

Leo shook his head with an aggravated noise."Look, I don't wanna say things he might not want every-one to know but it was just important to him to do this with Usagi ok? Trust me, this was _not_ my idea!"

Raph grunted, folding his arms as he thought about this. "So you've been sittin' here goin' crazy since they left."

"I've been going crazy since he asked me if he could go." Leo admitted, frowning hard at Raph.

Raph shook his head like he was scolding Leo or something. "Ya know... ya could've just _said_ so instead of makin' me think you'd lost yer mind."

"Well I haven't." Leo mumbled. "I'm just worried about them."

"That makes two of us." Raph said, giving Leo a toothy grin. Leo managed a shaky smile in response.

"Three." I said, more to myself than to them. I turned to stare back out the still-open door, gripping the door-frame in one hand and the door itself in the other.

I frowned as I thought I saw something in the distance. I squinted my eyes and brought my hands up like goggles, trying to figure out what it was.

"Hey, I think I see something." I said, not looking away from the moving thing.

"Is it them?" Leo said and I heard him come closer before the door was opened a little wider beside me.

"I dunno." I said, turning to look at him when he came to stand beside me. "I don't think so. It looks too big and there's only one of them."

"It ain't one of them samurai from the camp is it?" Raph said, also coming closer, his hands gripping his sai handles.

"Dude, you got eyes right?" I grumbled at him.

We stood in silence in the doorway, frowning at the moving thing as it came over the far hill towards us. I had no idea what it was suppose to be and the snowfall, even if it was light, made it harder to make anything out clearly.

"What _is_ that?" Raph asked, taking a step or two out of the building to stand in the snow.

"I dunno. A camel maybe?" I said, following after him, Leo not far behind me.

"Oh yeah. It must be one of them East Asian Camels I'd heard so much about." Raph snapped back.

"Really? Those exist?" I said, turning to blink at him wide-eyed.

He merely gave me a sign like he was gonna land a fist on me in irritation.

"Oh no..." Leo said.

I turned to frown at him, about to ask if East Asian camels ate people or something when he pushed past me and Raph a little harder than he needed to. I caught a glimpse of his face as he passed, and felt something inside me twist itself up.

Leo took a few quick, wide strides before he broke into a gallop, running into the night towards the figure. Raph and I didn't even think twice before we followed him.

Xxxxxxxxxxx

When we caught up with Leo he and Donny were crouched down in the snow, Leo was frantically running his hands over the inert body Don was carrying on his shell. I skidded to a stop, staring at the scene in front of me completely lost for words. I felt Raph bump into me slightly as he ran closer, crouching down on the other side of Don.

"Donny what happened?" Leo said. He sounded panicked. I didn't like hearing Leo panicked.

Donny shook his head so hard his bandana tails flew left to right violently. "He's been shot!" He said, rather loudly. There was a break in his voice.

"My God..." Raph looked up, his eyes stone-set as he turned to Leo. "Leo he's bleedin' pretty badly."

"Mikey!" Leo said so sharply I physically jumped. "Mikey, get the Innkeeper! Tell him we need a doctor!"

I stared panic-stricken at him, looking back and forth between him and unmoving figure of Usagi. I wanted to do as Leo said but my legs felt like they'd locked themselves.

"_Mikey!_" Raph yelled at me loudly.

My breath stumbled and I found myself turning around on auto-pilot before I ran back to the inn, slipping on the snow only once before I stormed back into the building.

Xxxxxxxxxxx

"I'm coming I'm coming!" The voice on the other side of the door said after I'd banged on it long enough.

"Open up open up." I chanted through gritted teeth, shifting my weight back and forth from foot to foot.

The door obeyed and the sleeping face of the innkeeper stared back at me. "Do you know what time it is?" He grumbled irritably at me. Behind him I could see a lady with long black hair sit up, yawning to herself.

I waved a finger back to where the door to the inn was, breathing hard. "Some-one's hurt!"

"What?" The Innkeeper pulled a face at me but opened the door a little further. "What do you mean?"

I gave an angry growl, stamping a foot. There was no time for this! "My friend's been hurt! We need a doctor or whatever you guys have here! Like right now!"

"Alright alright, calm down." The innkeeper said, opening the door all the way. He seemed to have been woken up properly by my words. "What happened?"

"I'll explain later!" I said. I could feel my anger burning through my panic. "Look, we _need_ a Doctor! He's gonna _die!_"

"Calm down." The innkeeper said again, stepping out from his room. "Bring him inside, I'll get help." He turned back to the woman who was sitting up, staring at the two of us with large, scared looking eyes. "Look after our guests until I get back wife. Get blankets and starts a fire. Quickly now!"

She gave a shaky nod, getting to her feet quickly. "Yes husband."

The innkeeper pushed past me, pointing at me as he went. "Do not take him upstairs, it'd take too long and can aggravate whatever injury he might have. Use our room."

I gave a nod as I watched him go. He disappeared around a corner and I heard him break into a run over the inn's wooden floors before he left. The long-haired lady hurried over to me, her hands clasped tightly around the front of the _juban_ she was wearing, keeping it closed. She seemed to be shaking slightly.

"What happened sir?" She asked me. "We're not in danger are we?"

I shook my head, moving quickly to tell the others what was going on. I wasn't really listening to what she was saying.

Xxxxxxxxxxx

"I managed to stop the bleeding." The doctor said, wiping blood from his hands as he turned to our little crowd which was staring anxiously either at him or the silent figure of our friend lying on our innkeeper's futon.

"He's gonna be ok right?" I asked. I was clutching the folds on my pants so tightly I could feel my fingernails digging into my palms, but I didn't care.

The doctor gave a sigh and I almost burst into tears. That was not a sigh you _ever_ wanted to hear in response to that question.

"He was struck below the shoulder from the back, so his heart and his lungs were not hit. I managed to remove the lead and there does not appear to be much damage." He put down the cloth he'd used to wipe his hands back into the wooden bucket filled with water. "But he has bled very badly and I am concerned about his strength. I have bandaged the wound and treated it with a healing agent but it is out of mortal hands at this stage. We can only wait it out. If he makes it through the night we can relax some, but to give you my honesty, it is very likely the wound could kill him."

I felt like my lungs wouldn't fill with air properly. I wanted to look at Usagi but found I couldn't bring myself to do it. I looked at Donny instead. He looked pale and I could see him shaking from where I sat. He was staring at his knees, his hands mirroring my own as he clutched at the material of his pants.

Xxxxxxxxxxx

The snow had stopped by now, it never got any heavier than it'd been earlier. We'd been shooed out of the innkeeper's bedroom by the doctor. He said that having so many people in the room was not good for Usagi or something. Something about the air or something I dunno. The doctor stayed in the room, saying he would watch over Usagi until morning.

The rest of us hung around in the main room of the inn. I dunno how much time went by but at some point the innkeeper came into the room again. I hadn't even been aware that he'd left. He brought with him some hot tea, saying that we could all use something to try and get rid of the shock and to keep our spirits up. For an innkeeper he seemed surprisingly level-headed during all this. I didn't really like tea, but I drank it anyway, hoping it'd work like a miracle cure or something for how I was feeling.

I felt cold. Not from the snow or the wind though. It felt like a coldness coming from the inside and growing outwards, focusing on my fingers and my chest. I sat on one of the tables as I drank, completely blocking out the world around me. I didn't have to focus very hard to do so. There was a growing numbness inside me which seemed to be killing off the fear running through my veins as well as locking me away from what was said between my brothers, the innkeeper and his wife.

I was vaguely aware of the innkeeper talking to Raph, trying to find out what had happened, if the inn was in danger and what on earth we'd been doing for this to happen. Raph was answering his questions calmly but without giving away too much information. Donny was sitting next to him, staring at the innkeeper as he spoke but not saying that much. Raph hand put an arm around his shoulders. The innkeeper's wife was making herself scarce, but from what I could tell it seemed to be because she was scared. That and the sight of blood had upset her. I had no idea what she was doing right now but to be a bit of a jerk, I didn't care. Leo was...

I blinked with a light frown as something clicked in my head through the fog and I looked up. Where _was_ Leo? Did he stay with Usagi? I don't think so. The doctor had chased us all out. I got up from my seat on the table, putting my cup on it as I looked around the room. He was nowhere to be seen. No-one paid me any attention as I walked over to the staircase and climbed up to the second floor. I don't think they even noticed me go.

I reached the door to our room and slid it open, looking around inside. It was empty, the futons still rolled up and stored away, completely unused. The paper lamp in the room was lit, flickering slightly as the candle was close to burning itself out. I felt a small breeze stroke against my face and I shivered, looking around to see where the draft was coming from.

The far wall, the one that was completely wooden, appeared to be open by a crack. I frowned to myself as I walked over to it. I didn't know the walls could open. I put my fingers into the crack and slid it open all the way. I was surprised to find there was actually a balcony there. It faced the opposite side of the Inn's front door, facing the rest of the town. There was a deep layer of snow on it. It hadn't been swept in a few days.

However, this didn't mean no-one had been here recently. There were deep holes and thrown up snow from some-one stepping into the deep snow-bank. the three or four footprints made a semi-circle, going out the door before turning and facing the wall of the inn again. I stepped outside, following the tracks with my eyes before looking up the wall and to the roof.

Leo was sitting with his arms crossed over the top of his knees, staring out at the horizon. He didn't show any signs of having seen me. I stared at him for a few minutes before looking around again. I managed to find a hand-hold and with a few quick steps and a jump I managed to get up to the roof myself.

I stood in front of him, saying nothing. He didn't even look up.

After a drawn out pause I took a few steps closer before I sat down next to him, following his gaze although I knew there was nothing to look at. We sat in silence for what seemed like forever.

"...I should've gone with him." Leo eventually croaked out, speaking to the scenery.

I turned to blink at him. I had no clue what to say.

Leo scrunched his eyes shut with a heavy sigh and pressed his forehead against his arms. "Me and my stupid plans."

I felt my shoulders sink as I watched him. We sat in silence again, Leo not looking up after his statement. Eventually I raised my arm and put it around his shoulders, tugging him a little closer to me. He didn't so much as flinch.

It was freezing on the roof, and I could feel him shiver just as much as I was, but we made no move to go back inside.

"He'll be ok Leo." I heard myself say softly.

There was a pause before Leo shifted, raising his face out of his arms again with a moist inhale.

"You don't know that." He said, wiping at his eyes with a thumb.

"Sure I do." I said, no sense of humour in my voice.

Leo said nothing at this, keeping his eyes forward.

"I'm serious." I pressed when he was quiet for too long.

"You can't say stuff like that Mikey." Leo said. "I don't... I don't wanna hear stuff like that if it's not gonna be true."

"It's true bro." I said.

"How?" He asked, a strange mix of irritation and desperateness in his calm voice.

"Because the sun's coming up." I said.

We said nothing more to each other, watching the first white, broken specks break away from the mountains before the beginnings of a disc started to appear. We eventually had to turn and look at something else as we heard doors and windows start to open in the village below us. Soon I could feel warmth start to bake against my face as the sun escaped the mountains completely.

Eventually, we'd have to go back inside again and see if anything had changed, but I wasn't gonna be the one to point that out. I just wanted to sit out here a little longer and hope everything inside was still ok.

"We better go back inside." Leo said softly after a few minutes.

I made a small noise but gave a nod. Despite saying this though we both sat there a little longer, not moving.

"Leo?" I said eventually.

"Yeah?" He said.

I hesitated, not wanting to go back inside any more than he did. "They're... they're gonna start looking for us if we don't go."

The corner of his mouth pulled slightly but he nodded. He gave a shaky breath.

"I know." He said. "...I'm just scared."

I sank as I gave a nod. "Me too."

"I thought you said he'd be ok." Leo pointed out turning to look at me. He looked tired.

"I did." I said, shifting in my seat a little. "But I'm still scared."

Leo said nothing for a few minutes, turning to stare ahead of himself again. He then shifted, moving out of my arm and getting to his feet.

"He'll be ok." He said, giving my shoulder a light pat. "Come on. Let's go."

I nodded, standing up as well. When Leo said it, it sounded true.

**Xxxxx**

_I originally saw this chapter as being very fragmented. Looking at it now I don't know if it works or not. Oh well. I hope you guys like it anyway._

_Also, referring to each other simply as "wife" and "husband" is not such a strange thing in Japan although I'm not sure if they still do this as much._


End file.
